Of Spies and Assassins
by OlyveTheOctoPus
Summary: Years ago, Kim went to the Otai Academy expecting to learn martial arts. Little did she know Otai is a school that trains assassins. She is forced to forget her past and pushes Jack and all her friends out of her mind. Until suddenly, she's thrown back into a world she thought she had given up. Kick AU.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It and am merely using the characters for my and your entertainment.**

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**Prologue:**

_And the things that we fear are a weapon to be held against us.  
~The Weapon  
_

The ninja rounded the corner of the roof, flipping out of the way when a gunshot rang. She froze and turned on her heel, sai raised and her mask covering an unreadable expression.

The cop rounded the corner shortly afterwards, "Freeze!"

Turning her head, the ninja stared the cop down, silently watching him. Not moving. And then she attacked. She slashed and targeted vitals, but the cop was prepared, countering her moves in a brutal dance that personally, he believed felt way too familiar. She pivoted and peeled out a heel kick, catching him off guard as he flipped back to avoid her.

The ninja laughed a skeevy little giggle before attacking again. This time, he waited and caught her wrist. Rotating her around, he tried to bring her to the floor and pin her, but she escaped his movement by dropping and kicking him in the gut.

He grunted and fell back, but she was having none of that. She was on the offensive now. And she was going to utilize it well.

She rushed at him, her eyes glittering dangerously as she attacked. Her form was graceful, yet fierce and with each slash, the cop found himself being forced to defend more carefully. He almost missed each shot she took at him, if not for the moonlight glinting evilly off the blades of her weapon.

"Why do you have swords? What is this? The middle ages?" he yelled out.

He felt rather than saw her feral grin, but before he could say anything else, she disappeared. He spun around, trying to see where she went.

"Up here!" she called out, her voice grotesque.

By the time he looked up and blocked, she had already descended upon him and gotten a clean slice to his arm. He cried out as pain erupted from the ripped skin. She landed on the ground a few feet away from him before he could retaliate.

"Dammit." she muttered, "I missed."

He grabbed his arm and pressed down hard on the wound, despite the pain, hoping he could limit the amount of blood flowing out. It wasn't a huge gash, thankfully, but it still hurt like a bitch. And she had definitely cut deep enough that he could bleed out if not careful.

"What were you aiming for with those swords of yours? My neck?"

"They're not swords. They're sai." She cleaned her blade off on her shirt in disinterest, "And you clearly aren't planning on letting me go, so yeah. I'm aiming for your neck."

He narrowed his eyes at her. So she was aiming to kill him, huh? Truth be told, he would've liked to attack full strength, but he just had to subdue her until reinforcements came. He had to capture her alive. But if she was going to try to kill him, then that was definite call to retaliate. He wasn't going to skin her alive or anything, but knocking her unconscious could do the trick.

He put his gun back into the holster silently and then went after her, attacking full force. She blocked each of his punches swiftly, but he could tell she was just barely avoiding getting hit. She was slowing down, though he wasn't sure if it was because she was tired or if she couldn't keep up with him. She hesitated when he feigned right, and he got a clean hit to her ribs, though she barely made a sound. Irritated, he grabbed her arms and yanked her forward, pulling her off balance to flip her over, but she wriggled out of his grasp, sliding through his arms like a snake and deftly avoided his set up.

_How is she able to figure out my moves so easily?!_

She flipped backwards high into the air, and he saw her hands moving to pull her weapons out again.

_Shit_.

He scrambled to grab his gun from the holster as she landed heavily in front of him.

His gun pointed at her face just as her sai came right in front of his nose. They stood there, not moving, breathing hard and holding their respective weapons at each other. Her mask obscured her face. His cap obscured his. Yet, for some reason, he couldn't help but feel like he knew this ninja. Her fighting style. There was something about it he couldn't quite place.

"Take off your mask." he ordered.

The ninja laughed and responded, in a distorted voice, "Why? So you can arrest me and take me to your headquarters Mr. Spy?"

His eyes widened, "How did you know I was a—"

"A beat cop who can use complicated martial arts? Come now, how dumb do you think I am? That's insulting." She lilted flirtatiously.

He shook his head, "Whatever. Take off your mask, or I'll shoot."

"Shoot an innocent ninja female? That's pretty brutal, Mr. Spy. I didn't do anything, did I?"

"You attempted to assassinate the CEO of this company. I'm pretty sure that merits your arrest."

She growled, "I attempted to assassinate a cruel drug lord and overall asshole. And you ruined my plans... Get out of my way so I can finish the job. Or I'm taking you out too."

"You'll have a bullet in your shoulder before you even touch me."

She scoffed. "Trust me, cutie pie. Your bullet won't touch me."

"You wanna bet?" he ground out through clenched teeth.

She could tell he was getting irritated by the way the gun was slightly shaking in his hands, as if he couldn't wait to pull the trigger. But she couldn't let that happen. In fact, judging by the time it took her to get to the roof and how long they were fighting, she could guess Yoko was on her way up. She knew the mission had failed by now. She had to get this guy out of the way. She hadn't expected him to be able to follow her so easily. He was a really strong tail. The fact that he could keep up with her on par was something else.

There was something oddly familiar about him too. Something she couldn't quite place. Looking over to the left, she saw Yoko advancing on their position from behind. Looks like it was almost time to go.

"Alright, Mr. Spy. Time's up."

She jumped forward in a flash and attacked him again, knocking the gun out of his hands with a well calculated wheel kick. It clattered somewhere far on the roof. Slightly stunned, he countered quickly by uppercutting her face brutally, knocking the mask off, but not before she got a clean kick towards his. She hissed as she bit her tongue hard. His head snapped back from the impact of the flying foot. His cap flew off and landed softly somewhere on the roof.

Silence fell between them. They stopped, staring at each other in disbelief.

"...Kim?"

"...Jack?"

A sharp pain hit Jack in the back of his head and he fell to the ground, groaning, but not quite unconscious. Another identical ninja ran toward Kim as she picked up her mask.

"Demon! We have to run! His reinforcements are on their way up."

Jack looked up through his bleary vision and watched as Kim and her friend ran towards the edge of the building. She glanced one more time back as she reached the ledge and stared at him, eyes shining with indeterminable emotion.

Time stopped as he watched her, his heart beating outrageously fast. He could hear the pounding of his heart through his ears. She gave him a small, regretful smile before slipping her mask on and jumping off the roof.

"Kim..." he rasped out, just as his vision gave way and his head hit the ground. The last thing he saw was her long blonde hair disappearing over the side of the building.


	2. New Beginnings

**Hello! New Story here! This idea has been gripping my mind since seeing the season 3 finale quite a whiles ago! Anyway, please enjoy. **

**Story: Of Spies and Assassins  
Rating: High T (for foul language, suggestive themes, and violence; will become M in the future)  
Summary: Kim went to the Otai Academy expecting to learn martial arts. Little did she know Otai is a school that trains assassins. She is forced to forget her past and pushes it out of her mind. Until suddenly, she's thrown back into a world she thought she had given up. Kick AU**

**A/N: Just fyi, part one is Kim's past. Part two? ...well ;P we'll cross that bridge when we get there.**

**Thank you for the kind reviews! You all are very sweet :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It and am merely using the characters for my and your entertainment.**

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**PART ONE**

**Chapter 1:**

_A bridge of silver wings stretches from the dead ashes of an unforgiving nightmare to the jeweled vision of a life started anew.  
~Aberjhani, The River of Winged Dreams_

_Ten years ago..._

Kim climbed out of the sleek black car. She thanked the driver as he handed her her suitcase and walked towards the clearing in the woods where several other girls were waiting. She was finally here in Japan. Finally at Otai Academy. The flight to Japan had been absolutely nerve-wracking. She had traveled by herself in a private jet. And even though being pampered and first class treatment had been one of the best things she'd ever experienced, she had been way too busy trying to steel her nerves and prepare for her first day.

She pocketed her Japanese-English dictionary into her carryon, extremely glad that at the academy, the main language spoken was English. It was a good thing too, since Kim hadn't quite had enough time to properly learn Japanese and only knew the basics. She tugged her electric pink suitcase toward the clearing, following some other students. She counted about twelve of them. Did that mean only twelve of them had been accepted into the school for the coming term?

She stopped slightly behind another student and looked around. They were in a forested clearing with a concealed pathway leading up a hill in which she assumed they would eventually have to climb. It was absolutely beautiful. There were blossomed cherry blossom trees everywhere with the petals falling and creating a gorgeous, pink cascade. She smiled softly, wrapping her hand loosely around the small silver ring dangling from her neck on a chain and thinking about Jack and how she had given him a cherry blossom as a final parting gift. Even in two completely different places, they were still connected. She took a picture of the beautiful trees, making a mental note to send it to him later.

"Can I have your attention please?"

Kim turned her attention to a short young woman wearing an elegant peach kimono with blue lilacs gently sprinkled over the fabric.

"First, congratulations on all of you being accepted to the great Otai Academy. Our objective is that we want to maintain unity and happiness on campus. For the next years that you spend here, you will learn all things martial arts along with core curriculum classes. Some of you will succeed. Some of you will not. But you were all chosen for a reason, so be proud of your accomplishment." She waited for them to take in her words before continuing, "My name is Minami Hiyori, but you will address me as Angel for the duration of your stay here."

Someone snickered in Kim's area, and she found herself rolling her eyes. How immature could this person get?

"If you will follow me, I will take you to the school to get oriented. If you have any pressing questions, now would be the time to ask. I will answer them as we walk."

They followed Angel through red shrine-like gates lit by red paper lanterns, walking along the slightly concealed pathway through the dark forest that Kim had noted earlier. Cherry blossoms loosened and fell around them as they walked. Kim snapped another quick picture of the image to send to her friends back home.

Someone spoke up. "Angel, why did we take a private jet to the school? Isn't that kind of… excessive… and odd?"

"Here at Otai, we want to make sure students have all resources available to feel the most comfort. Schoolwork and general training is very rigorous, not to mention taxing on the mind and body. Anything we can do to help you relax, we will. Any other questions?"

"Is the school on a mountain?" A curly haired girl asked in annoyance, "We've been climbing this hill for hours."

She was complaining already? Kim rolled her eyes in annoyance. It was true. They _had_ been walking on the uphill slope for a pretty long time, but it certainly was nothing to complain over. Nonetheless, Kim was glad she had decided to go with combat boots rather than her sandals. There were loose twigs and stones all over this pathway, so who knew how badly she could have gotten injured had she worn her open toed shoes.

If Angel was annoyed by the girl's complaining, she hid it fabulously. "The school is located on a mountain, but do not worry. Commute from the school to other places will not require going up and down large hills. Any others?"

"Where are the guys?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Why aren't there any guys with us? We're all a bunch of girls."

Kim mentally groaned. Great. So, so far, her group had a whiner/complainer, a skeptic, and a boy-obsessed. What a great group.

"Otai Academy is separated into the men's and women's school for the curriculums. Because there are two different sectors and wards, you will rarely make the acquaintance of a male student throughout the week. But do not fret, the chance to meet male students will present itself occasionally. As for why there are none with us at the moment, that is because their arrival time was earlier this morning."

Kim saw the girl pout in disappointment. Yup, a boy crazed girl.

"Does anyone else have any questions?"

No one seemed to have anything to say. They were all preoccupied with looking at their mysterious surroundings, though the trees hid most of the view of the sky. Kim knew when they had landed, the sky had been darkening into a gorgeous violet expanse, but now she couldn't tell how dark it was. There was something almost surreal about this whole experience. Maybe it was the fact that she was _actually_ here about to start school. She felt like she was going on an adventure into a new land that she never knew about. Kim was so lost in thought, that she almost didn't notice the group had stopped walking and almost ran straight into the girl in front of her.

"We have arrived."

Kim's eyes widened. They had reached a clearing at the edge of a lake. Beyond the lake, surrounded by a large wall teeming with cherry blossoms was an incredible structure resembling the look of a Japanese medieval castle. The sky was lit by a multitude of bright stars reflecting off of the water like flower petals dancing on ripples. The structure held a foreboding air to it and for several seconds, no one moved, just staring at the almost surreal image before them. _This_ was Otai Academy?!

Angel chuckled nearby them, and they turned to look at her in awe. No doubt seeing students' reactions to the castle was always amusing for her.

"If you will all please climb into this boat, then we will be heading on our way inside. Dinner will be served shortly, and I would not like to keep you all too long." She held her hand up, "Ah. One moment. Please leave your small luggage here on the bank if you will. Do not worry. They will be brought to your rooms unharmed."

The wooden boat in question was a pleasure boat fashioned in a way similar to old-style Japanese boats. The flat canopy-like top was adorned with similar red lanterns. Tatami mats covered the floor. Angel stood at the front with an elongated oar, helping students in. Following the others, Kim climbed into the boat and ended up wedged between two other flabbergasted girls. Was this happening for real?

When everyone was situated nicely and trying to grasp their minds around what was occurring, Angel pushed off the shore and began to row them gracefully on the lake, following the gentle current around the side of the school. Kim pulled her phone out carefully and snapped several pictures of the scenery, committing to memory the beautiful image. The girl next to her poked her lightly.

"Do you think the school is going to be super majestic inside too?"

Who knew? They had already been surprised several times. Who knew what they would encounter inside?

Kim shrugged, "I'm not sure. But this is _definitely_ not what I expected."

"I know right?" she agreed quietly, "The brochures seriously misled us."

Now that Kim thought about it, the brochure _had _shown some pretty conservative images of generic classrooms and training halls. She figured this wonderful view was a privilege only offered to accepted students then.

Kim nodded, and they both went back to gazing at the school. As they rounded the bend, they came upon a misty wooden bridge that seemed to float on its own above the water. Angel guided them to the side and then tethered the boat they had taken to a pole on the bridge.

"If you would all exit the boat please and head directly into the atrium. You will receive instructions from there."

Kim climbed out and got a better look at the boat now that she wasn't gawking at the scenery. It was huge! How in the world did Angel manage to move the boat without anyone else's help? She took a picture of the giant boat and then rushed after the other girls.

Surprisingly, the bridge wasn't unstable or wobbly. It was rigid, though from glancing at it, it gave the image of resting lightly on the water. They walked along the bridge until they arrived at two giant wooden double doors.

Well this was it. Kim would officially be starting the next chapter of her life. There was no going back now.

The doors opened, and she walked through with the other girls, expecting an ambush of some sort. But it was relatively normal. In fact, the atrium of the school wasn't anything ancient. Though the school had a stone interior, the rest of it looked fairly modern.

There was a man standing in the center of the atrium, a fairly unpleasant smile on his face. He held himself rigidly and regally, staring down at them with a somewhat distasteful expression on his face. Kim momentarily caught his eye, and she shivered involuntarily when his expression shifted into something rather disturbing. There was something worrying about him.

"Would all you ladies please stand in a straight line?" he boomed, shutting up the chattering girls effectively.

They stood at full attention and scrambled to make a line in front of him. He nodded once, pleased with their speed, before addressing them once again, "I am the headmaster of this school. My name is of no importance. Just Headmaster is fine. Or HM if you wish. Welcome to Otai Academy. I am honored that you have decided to join us at this establishment."

"Each of you has been brought due to your exceptional martial arts abilities. Some of you studied karate in dojos. Others of you, respective styles in your various hometowns. As you can see, you all come from different backgrounds and places. You have experienced different lives. But that is of no matter." He glared at them all, the disgust in his expression lingering momentarily. "Because at this school, we live as one, fight as one, train as one. As you will learn, individuality is not of importance. How do we remove your individual attitude? By forgetting your past." He walked stiffly over to a white table with a small empty bin and a jar filled with what looked like marbles.

"That being said, please set your phones down in this bin. Then choose a number from the jar."

There was a collective gasp of incredulity and outrage. Give up their phones? How were they supposed to communicate with their friends and family? Kim slapped her hand on her pocket. All the photos she was going to send to Jack were on there. She couldn't give up her phone.

"Are you kidding me?" The curly haired whiny girl from earlier audaciously exclaimed in a shrill voice, "I'm not giving you my phone! How am I supposed to call my boyfriend?"

An Asian girl two spots down from Kim with long, slick black hair curled her lip in disgust, glaring at the outraged girl. "Shut up. Stop acting like a whiny bitch and just give him the phone. Nobody cares about you or your dumb boyfriend."

"Excuse me? You picking a fight?"

"What do you think, lardass?"

The girls approached each other maliciously, squaring off. Kim looked at the headmaster wondering why he hadn't reacted yet to the fight that was clearly about to break out. But he was standing there with an empty smile on his face, looking like… well, he was enjoying the confrontation. While everyone's attention was diverted by the girls, Kim quickly pulled her phone out of her pocket, set it to silent, and slipped it into her bra. Truth be told, she agreed with Whiny Girl, but she didn't want to draw attention to herself. There was no way in hell she was giving up her phone.

"Ladies, if either of you lays a finger on the other, I will see to it that you are drowned in the lake surrounding our school."

Everyone quieted and stared at the headmaster in shock. His face was almost entirely serious. The girls pulled away from each other in shock, though not before the Asian girl stuck her tongue out at Whiny.

He smiled, though it didn't quite reach his eyes, "I'm just kidding. No need to be worried ladies. But please. Do not fight in the atrium. There will be plenty of time for that in future courses." Once they had gone back to their places in line, the headmaster addressed them all, gesturing to the table, "Now if you will."

Kim watched as girl after girl put their phone away reluctantly and picked a number from the jar. The Asian from before skipped the box entirely.

"Do you not have a phone?"

She glared at the headmaster, "Does it look like I have a phone?" She was wearing a simple deel* of mahogany color. It didn't look like she could hide a phone in there.

Smiling imperceptibly, the headmaster nodded and the line moved on. Kim held her breath when it was finally her turn up there. She skipped the box with the phone and reached in the jar to grab a number.

"Do you not have a phone?" he asked, his voice reverberating around the room as girls glanced at Kim.

She looked him straight in the eye unwaveringly, "No. I don't."

A small, almost unnoticeable smirk appeared on his face, "I see. Proceed."

She grabbed a number from the jar, shaking badly inside. She had hoped to appear unshaken, but there was no doubt that that had been one of the most frightening experiences of her life. His eyes were a haunted, obsidian bottomless pit. He had been staring straight through her, as if he knew that she had been lying. After she stepped back to her place in line, she glanced back at the headmaster. She would have to watch out for him. There was something almost unnatural about him.

Once all the girls had grabbed their numbers and relinquished their phones (with some pretty extreme reluctance on many girls' parts), he continued.

"As you have probably deduced, two sets of marbles numbered from one to six were in the jar. Find your partner."

Kim glanced at her marble and saw a number three. She watched as girls found their match and went to stand next to them. She didn't really care about who she ended up getting she supposed. She knew she didn't want Whiny Girl or the boy crazy one from earlier. She supposed that girl in the boat might be pretty cool, but as soon as that thought crossed Kim's mind, said girl from the boat found her partner.

"Hey. You've got a three don't you?"

She shifted her attention to the girl who had blocked her vision. It was the hotheaded Asian from earlier. _She_ was Kim's partner?

"Yeah, I've got a three."

The Asian girl grinned, "Good. Call me Yoko. I guess you're my partner."

"Kim." She mentally groaned. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was hotheaded, loud women. She shoved back the voice that sounded oddly like Jack in her mind saying that she was just as hotheaded and loud normally. "Yeah, I guess we are."

The headmaster cut the chatter and introductions short with a loud clearing of his throat. By now, most all the girls had realized he was definitely not someone to mess with, and they shut their mouths.

"Now that you've found your partners, I will continue. These partners are your roommates for however long the duration of your time here. They will be your 'buddy' for dinner and your sparring mate for morning spars. They might even become your best friend. Or your partner."

When he stated the last sentence, he had momentarily turned his attention directly to Yoko and Kim and Kim felt herself holding her breath. What was with that odd, foreboding look? She felt like there were swords pointed at her throat or snakes crawling up her skin. She glanced at Yoko, but any discomfort she might have felt was covered nicely by a scowl.

He must have seen something because he let out a small chuckle before continuing. "As of right now, dinner is being served. If you would follow Angel to the dining hall, you will be served supper. After supper, you will be allowed to relax in your rooms. You have had a long trip here. Tomorrow, prepare yourselves for orientation and an impromptu evaluation to preset the rigor of your courses."

Angel clapped her hands, "You all must be terribly hungry. If you will follow me to the dining hall please."

They walked behind her, heading further into the atrium towards some stairs.

"As you can see, this school is very large. If you take a right here from the base of the stairs, you will be heading to basically any academic rooms, meditation rooms, public baths for the students, and libraries. To the left, you will find the dining hall, indoor training grounds, exercise rooms, pools, and basically any training facilities we offer. Up these stairs, depending on the level, you will find either administrative rooms and offices, more libraries or the dormitory rooms of the students." She pointed toward the right of the stairs, "East wing is off limits to all you students. Do not let me catch you there."

Yoko nudged Kim suggestively, "We should totally go there and find out what they're trying to hide."

Kim scooted over and gave her a dirty glance, "No thanks. You can get in trouble by yourself."

Yoko sneered, her eyes shining in amusement, "Ah, should've known you'd be a brown nose."

Kim rolled her eyes. What was up with this girl? Did she always want to pick fights with people? Kim wasn't going to stand here and let her insult her for no reason.

"Not a brown noser. I just don't feel like taking unnecessary risks."

Yoko snorted derisively, "Yeah right little Miss Blondie. Bet you've never done anything wrong in your life."

Making sure no one was watching in their general direction, without a word, Kim yanked her phone out from her bra before dropping it back in there.

Kim couldn't help the smug look that overtook her face, "Like I said. I just don't feel like taking _unnecessary_ risks."

Yoko looked pleasantly surprised, but that didn't stop her from scoffing, "Whatever. That's not anything special."

"Alright ladies, I will lead you to the main dining hall." Angel began to walk down the hall she had brought them through. Kim cursed in her mind. She hadn't heard the rest of Angel's instructions. "Don't be fooled into thinking this school is rather small from the inside. It is greatly expansive and getting lost is something that happens frequently. Even in my time here, I still get lost. If you are lost, ask any of the student guides situated at the end of any hallway to guide you where you need to go. There will always be someone on duty."

She reached a door and pulled it open, holding it for everyone walking through. "And this is the dining hall."

To say it was huge was an understatement. There were students everywhere getting food, chatting at tables, laughing. Speaking of the food, Kim's nostrils flared and drool almost left her mouth at the savory smells. It was buffet style eatery and all kinds of food were available from several different cultures for the students to eat. Kim caught sight (and wind) of a particularly delicious looking pork roast and as if on cue, her stomach released a deafening roar.

Some of the girls laughed, and Kim chuckled, scratching the back of her head, "Sorry. Guess I'm just hungry."

Angel smiled gently, "Completely understandable. Some of you had very long flights here. Please, go ahead and get food. Make sure to sit with your buddies for today."

The girls scattered to various areas, chatting with each other about what they were interested in eating. There were tables all along the walls of the dining hall with several different choices of food available to eat. There was smoked fish, pastas, roasted meats, carbs galore, and some dishes Kim had never seen before. She made a mental note to definitely try something new every day. But right now, she just wanted to pile a crap ton of food onto her plate and eat to her heart's content.

"What are you getting, Yoko?"

She looked bored, "Definitely none of this disgusting meat."

Kim's grinning excitedly at the server when she placed some spaghetti Bolognese onto her plate, "You're a vegetarian?"

Yoko's eyes narrowed, "Yeah. Why are you getting so much food?"

"I'm hungry." Kim filled a glass with some lemon water and then stood beside Yoko, waiting as she seeped a teabag into her cup of hot water. "Where do you wanna sit?"

Yoko's eyes scanned the crowd of people already situated and grinned almost cat-like. "Let's sit there." She pointed to an area where some girls were sitting and holding each other in headlocks. Kim tried to keep herself from laughing. It looked like a scene straight from a cliché teen's movie. The girls were wearing ripped up gi's* with their hair in various sloppy styles. They were isolated from the other tables and people seemed to avoid their tables as they walked to the surrounding area.

"Do you purposely look for trouble wherever you go?" Kim rolled her eyes. They were obviously an uninviting group of girls. "Don't you think sitting there would cause problems?"

But Yoko wasn't listening. She had already grabbed her tray and was rushing over there to claim the spot at the end of the girls' table. Kim sighed in annoyance and followed Yoko to the table, sitting down across from her. Yoko took a delicate sip of tea while Kim began to eat her foot, almost squealing in delight at the exceptional taste. If only she could take a picture of the food she had for dinner. Jack would be _so_ jealous. She sighed thinking about Jack. It had only been a day since she'd last seen him, but it already felt like it had been months. She had made so many plans with him to hang out in the summer and spend time together, but all those plans had to be canceled with her admission to the school.

"Can we help you?" Yoko drawled.

Kim had been so lost in her thoughts and in the food that she hadn't noticed at all that the girls had stood up from their table and approached the two of them. It wasn't until Yoko had spoken that Kim snapped out of it and looked up at them. The area suddenly grew quiet as the head honcho, Kim assumed, stared down at them menacingly. She was a pretty tall girl and her arms were cut and toned. Except for the spiky mop of hair on her head, Kim might have mistaken her as just a regular student.

"You guys are pretty fresh meat so you might not know how things work here. As you can clearly see, this table and the one over there that my friends and I are sitting at belong to us. Unfortunately for you, I didn't invite you to sit here."

Yoko smirked, taking another sip of her tea while Kim kept eating, trying to ignore the girl. She couldn't stand bullies. She figured there would be at least one in this school.

Yoko chuckled and leaned across the table, "Doesn't this seem like this could be some scene out of The Karate Kid?"

Kim ignored her, too. She just wanted to frickin eat in peace. She popped a piece of the pot roast in her mouth and almost melted in bliss. It was so succulent. So tender. The perfect cut of meat.

Suddenly a hand slammed in between them, and Yoko and Kim both looked up at the girl who wasn't looking quite as friendly as she was earlier. Well… not that she looked any friendly before.

"Didja hear me small fry? I said move."

Kim set her fork down and glared at her, "There's no one even at this table and there's plenty of space for us to sit here. What's wrong with us sitting here?"

"Oooh now you've done it." Yoko squealed happily.

Kim turned her glare on Yoko, "This is your fault you know? Why are you so happy?" Kim subtly cracked her knuckles under the tables. No doubt she was about to get attacked.

The upperclassman stood to her full height, staring down at Kim with so much contempt, Kim felt that if she had been anyone else, she would be a puddle of cream right now. It was a good thing she was Kim Crawford then, wasn't it?

"So you think you're some hot shit just cuz you're blonde and pretty and got into this school, huh?"

Yoko laughed, "Are people always generally jealous of your looks, Blondie?"

Her eyebrow twitched in irritation, "Yoko, you're not helping!"

By now, the upperclassman's face was red and the area had grown deathly quiet. Everyone was watching the battle that was brewing. The rest of the cronies had stood up at that point and were staring the two girls down with unforgiving expressions.

Yoko's face settled into an unsettling smile. "Hey Blondie. You take the two near you. I'll handle the other five."

"Why do I get two and you get five? I'm probably the better fighter." Kim answered dryly. She really didn't _want_ to fight, but at this point, what could she do? That was just great. Her first day of school, and she had already made enemies and her only sort of ally was her crazy roommate. Otai was already looking great…

Spiky head looked pissed. "Excuse me?!"

Before she knew what happened, Kim and Yoko had jumped and grabbed a girl's arm each, flipping them over their backs right onto the table with a loud crash as the table toppled to the ground.

"The food!" Kim cried, lamenting the fact that her food had fallen. Yoko laughed like some crazed hyena when a bunch of the girls came at them relentlessly. Kim dodged a harsh sidekick and used the girl's momentum to spin her around and release her into the growing crowd. There was a high pitched squeal as people tried to avoid the flying body.

At least there was one good thing about having friends who attracted trouble back in Seaford. She was used to ending up in brawls.

"Blondie, duck!"

Kim obliged and ducked just as someone went flying over her head and smashed into one of the buffet tables. The table and everything on it went crashing to the ground. "My name…" she blocked a punch from someone and kicked her in the stomach and away, "Is Kim!"

"Don't care." They stood back to back in their respective neutral stances waiting for the girls to attack again.

Until suddenly, Angel appeared before them all with a fan, grabbed Kim and Yoko's head and knocked them roughly together. They both cried out and held their heads as pain erupted through them. She grabbed the back of both their collars. Her face looked severe, and Kim was rather surprised because she had never assumed Angel, who had seemed rather lovely at this point would have been capable of such a brutal expression. Then again, Angel _did_ say she went to this school.

"Who gave _any _of you permission to get into a fight?" her voice was low and chilling. "Anna. You've been here for almost four years. You know better. We fight only on the mats with controls and rules. No brawling."

Spiky headed Anna scoffed indignantly, "Those bitches started it."

"That is no excuse for participating. Anna, I want you and your friends to clean up this whole mess. You will receive your punishment later. As for you two…" she began to drag them out of the dining hall, "You will receive immediate disciplinary action. We don't need troublemakers in this school."

Kim gulped audibly. Was she about to get kicked out?! Dammit! This was just the worst thing ever! First day and she had already managed to tick off the "head girls" and anger an administrative person, and she _still_ hadn't made a friend yet. After this whole ordeal, there was no way anyone would be interested in being her friend. She turned to look at the rest of the people momentarily and saw a bunch of girls all staring at the two of them in awe and confusion. Some were whispering to each other. She groaned. It was over. Her life at this school was over. And the worst part was she didn't even get to finish her food!

Yoko laughed heartily, obviously thinking this was amusing, "Well at least we got to go out with a bang, huh Blondie?"

"We haven't even started yet! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What can I say?" Yoko grinned, "I live for the thrill."

Kim ignored her. She could not sympathize with her laughter in the slightest. There was nothing funny about getting expelled. How the hell would she explain this to her mom?

When they left the dining hall, Angel guided them through the hallways and back to the stairs where they climbed and headed to the west wing.

"Honestly, what were the two of you thinking?" she let go of their collars and frowned at them, "What part of 'we want to maintain unity and happiness on campus' means make enemies and start a brawl from day one? I thought you would have more sense than that." Yoko was about to respond, but Angel procured the fan from her sleeve and thwacked her on the head before she could get a word out. Yoko held her head in pain, "We all know that you have skills in martial arts. This is not a chance for you to show them off, because believeme, everybody here is good. And if you're not careful, you could get seriously injured. Anna, the one you picked a fight with? She is our top student. She has been our top student for three years now. And trust me, her temper is not to be tampered with."

Yoko grinned, "Sounds like a challenge."

Angel's eyes darkened, "A challenge you say? If you try to fight her unprovoked ever again, _your_ challenge will be to escape the bottom of our lake, because the Headmaster was not joking that rule breaking will get you drowned."

Her sudden change in demeanor and her chilling words were enough to shut Yoko up and her mouth clammed, her face turning a bit pale. Kim felt a headache coming on. She just wanted to go back to the dining hall and eat. She wished there was a way to turn back the clock and make her pick a different number. None of this would be happening if she hadn't ended up as Yoko's partner!

Angel rapped her knuckles briskly on the oak door they had stopped in front of. "This is the headmaster's office. He will decide your fates. Enter."

The creepy headmaster was the disciplinarian… Kim felt herself sweat drop. Would this be the end of Kimberly Beulah Crawford?! They entered the dark room, illuminated by a single lamp and stood near the door as Angel shut it closed, giving them one more chastising glare before she disappeared. The office had few furnishings save for two wooden chairs in front of his raised desk. It created an illusion of sitting in front of a mighty judge. Bookshelves aligned every wall and were filled with countless books of little importance to Kim. Case in point: this office was creepy.

"Kim. Yoko. Please, sit down."

They shuffled over to the chairs in front of his raise desk and plopped down. He stared at them with his expressionless eyes, an eyebrow raised, "I was notified of your recent brawl. Do you have anything to say for yourselves?"

"Yeah." Yoko muttered, "Bitches had it coming." Kim elbowed her in the arm harshly. She was getting fed up with Yoko's inability to shut up when the need called for it! Her frickin black hole of a mouth would get Kim in so much trouble. Yoko glared angrily at Kim and rubbed her arm, mouthing an irritated 'What' at her.

"Did they now?" he chuckled mirthlessly.

Both girls stopped their glaring match and looked back up at the headmaster. The limited light in his office was casting an ominous shadow on his face.

"You both are sixteen and young. You're impulsive, and I understand that coming to a new environment makes you a bit too eager, but fighting while not under the permission of a sensei is strictly forbidden here." He no longer sounded jovial. In fact, his tone was rough and held a dangerous tint to it. "You would do well to learn that now. Or you _will_ suffer the consequences. This is your first infraction, so I will pardon it this time. Do not get into any other fights again."

"Yes sir." Kim responded quickly before Yoko could interject and possibly make their situation worse. But Yoko just nodded her head and didn't respond, crossing her arms and sulking.

"Good. Out of curiosity, who were you fighting?"

"Someone named Anna and her group of friends." Kim answered.

"And you both have no injuries?"

Yoko frowned, "They couldn't even get a single hit in. Typical."

"Interesting." His hands formed a steeple, and he looked at them as if he was actually seeing them for the first time. Kim swallowed. There was a worrisome gleam in his eyes. "You both are dismissed. Find Angel. She'll send you straight to your room."

Kim stood up immediately and left the office, not caring whether Yoko was following her or not. She headed back towards the stairs and found Angel waiting for them there.

"Your punishment?"

"There was none."

Angel smiled in relief. "That's good."

Kim was so confused. That was a good thing? From Angel's reaction to the fight earlier, Kim had assumed that she wanted them tarred and feathered or something. Maybe Angel had been putting on airs. Before Kim could ask what she had meant by her comment, Angel began to ascend more stairs, waving them to follow her.

"Your room is on the fifth floor with most second years."

They made quick work of the stairs until they reached the floor. Girls were lounging around stretching on the floor or walking around brushing their teeth. Some of them watched the two newcomers and whispered amongst themselves. No doubt they recognized Kim and Yoko for earlier.

Angel walked them over to one of the girls who was stretching, "Blair, these are your two new floormates. Could you please show them the ropes? I'm afraid I have an appointment I must attend to immediately."

Blair smiled, "Sure thing." She stood up and started walking further down the hall, "C'mon you two. Your room is 523." They followed her as she went to a closet in the hallway and opened a cabinet to grab the master key for the rooms. "So are ya'll the two crazy chicks who picked a fight with Anna?"

Kim nodded.

Blair looked impressed, "And yet you live. Respect." They got to the room and Blair unlocked the door with the master key. "So showers are at the end of the hall. Your uniforms are sitting on your desks. Your gi's are in the closet. We don't have locks on the doors because locks means secrecy and individuality, which is against our school policy. But don't worry, there's always someone watching the floor so your crap won't get stolen. Curfew is at eleven. That means after eleven, you cannot leave your floor until dawn. There's patrolling all night and we have periodic, random room checks so sneaking around is almost impossible. And finally, sheets and futons are replaced and washed every two weeks or so. Oh. And no guys on our floor. _Ever_. Did you commit all that to memory?"

Kim and Yoko stared at her like she had grown two heads.

"Of course we didn't commit all that word vomit to memory. What do you think?" Yoko snarled.

Blair laughed loudly and slapped her jovially on the back, "Don't worry about it. I'm in the room right in front of the stairs if you need to ask me questions. Feel free to ask as many as you wish until you get used to life here." She pushed open their door, "I have a feeling I'm going to like you girls. Enjoy your room."

Kim entered the room and noticed it was sparsely furnished. Aside from Kim's electric pink suitcase, and Yoko's cardboard box, there were only two futons, two sets of sheet and a spare in each closet, a desk and chair, and a dresser at the bottom of the closet. The letter she had received in the mail had not been kidding when it stated that they encouraged a minimalist lifestyle at Otai. She had been instructed to only bring one suitcase with the essentials. Everything else could be acquired at the school. It had been hard to choose what to bring, but since Kim figured she would be going home to visit occasionally, she could switch out what she needed with other items.

Kim opened her suitcase and collected her toiletries. She wasn't planning on going to bed dirty. After the ten hour flight, the trek in the mountains, and the sweaty fight, she was sure she must stink like hell. Even if she didn't, she didn't feel comfortable sleeping on clean linens when she was dirty.

"I'm gonna go take a shower, Yoko."

Yoko, who had plopped straight on her futon as soon as they had entered the room, grunted noncommittally in response. She was probably just as tired as Kim, even if she didn't show it. Chuckling to herself, Kim left the room and headed down the hall to take her shower. It was a communal bathroom with shower stalls and Kim was pleasantly surprised to find it empty and _clean_, above all things. She near melted into the ground as hot water poured onto her sore muscles and tired body. It was absolutely wonderful.

After her shower, Kim returned to their dark room and toweled her hair as dry as she could, but she just didn't feel like putting any effort into it. After her day, she was exhausted, her body hurt and she just wanted to sleep for days. Jet lag was catching up to her and now that her initial adrenaline had been completely flushed away, she could feel herself rapidly sinking into her fatigue. She didn't even have the energy to contact Jack. She stuck her phone under the corner of her futon. She would email him tomorrow with the pictures from before. And about her ridiculous first day.

Yoko was already snoring on her side of the room, buried under her sheets. Yawning, Kim slipped under her sheets and plopped her head on her pillow. Tomorrow would be a better day. Her eyes slid closed and she felt herself slipping into the blissful land of dreams.

It was strange though. Since when did she hear the sound of soft giggling and footsteps in her sleep?

Sitting up in alarm, she tried to focus her vision on the movements in the dark.

"What the hell?! Let go of me!" Yoko suddenly shouted. There was a loud thump and then silence.

"Yoko? What happened?" Kim ripped the covers off her body and prepared to defend herself, but someone suddenly grabbed her arms. "What gives?!" She struggled, kicking around her legs in random directions hoping to hit someone at least. Every time she saw a dark figure, she aimed for it, but she just seemed to be hitting air.

"Shut up!" Someone hissed harshly in her ear.

Then she was knocked hard on the back of the head and shoved face first onto the ground, her vision blurring before altogether disappearing.

* * *

***deel: a traditional, Mongolian outfit  
*gi: the white (or colored; it depends on the style) martial arts uniform that many practicing martial artists wear  
*sai (this was in the Prologue): a traditional, midlength pointed weapon with two adjacent prongs on either side.**

**Regarding the descriptions, if they are confusing or not able to be pictured, I would recommend looking them up :) Sorry. I'm not a very good describer, but the only way I know how to write is by assuming that people know what I am talking about haha**

**Any other confusions, questions or errors, please let me know.**

**Hope it was enjoyable! Thank you :)**


	3. Justice? Or Not?

**Story: Of Spies and Assassins  
Rating: High T (for foul language, suggestive themes, and violence; ****will**** become M in the future)  
Summary: Kim went to the Otai Academy expecting to learn martial arts. Little did she know Otai is a school that trains assassins. She is forced to forget her past and pushes it out of her mind. Until suddenly, she's thrown back into a world she thought she had given up. Kick AU**

**A/N: So everything has been mapped out completely. Part One only has about 10 chapters left in it. It serves as a background and slight filler and thus, the only detailed information will be Kim's milestones. You'll see. If you'll stick with me that long, we'll get to the meat of the story in part two. Please be patient. It'll pick up. I sway-ah. :3**

**Thank you for the kind reviews! You all are very sweet :) (If I forgot to personally thank you, please don't take it to heart. I'm very scatterbrained).**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It and am merely using the characters for my and your entertainment.**

* * *

**Chapter 2:**

_At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.  
~Aristotle_

Kim opened her eyes blearily, blinking several times to clear her vision. Everything was so dark and she couldn't tell where she was at all. She blinked again, but the darkness remained. She deduced she was in a darkened room somewhere, but she didn't know where. It reeked of sweat and had this lingering musty stench normally found in underground rooms and basements.

She was stuck to a chair with her wrists connected behind her and her ankles locked to the legs of the chair. She rolled her eyes in annoyance. Really? Tying her to a chair? What was next? Some stupid interrogation where she would get electrocuted for every wrong answer? Kim had no doubt it must have been those girls from earlier who wanted to exert their personal vendetta against the two. As if on cue, she heard a groan and a shuffle from beside her.

"Yoko?" she whispered. Her eyes strained to see through the all-encompassing darkness, but she just couldn't adjust and found herself staring in darkness where she thought Yoko was. "Pst… Yoko."

"Blondie? Where the hell are we?" she whispered back.

"You're in the Batcave." A grotesque voice stated.

They both narrowed their eyes in pain as super bright lights were suddenly turned on. Kim was right. She and Yoko were tied side-by-side to identical chairs. They were in a large, empty dojo. There were swords lining the front walls all facing a giant poster with the kanji* for peace written on it. She could hear the sound of a waterfall behind her, but the chair she was attached to was tall and heavy, and she found she wasn't able to see past a certain point. But along the left and right sliding doors, were...

…Ninja…

Kim almost burst out laughing. She must have been dreaming because this was ridiculous! Literally, there were at least twenty of the ninja lined up against the walls. All wearing odd masks of different variety. They were stone still and if not for the periodic rise and fall of their chests, Kim would've thought they were statues. She noted they were all female.

"I'm just kidding. You're not in the batcave."

The ninja who had spoken earlier approached the two of them gracefully, holding a lacquered fan in her hand. The fan looked oddly familiar. Where had she seen that fan before? The one in front of them was wearing a mask of sheer white lace adorned with shining jewels. If not for the grotesque, distorted voice that had spoken, Kim might have loosened up.

"Where are we?" Yoko demanded, her voice parched.

"Welcome to Honbu*. Our headquarters." And then the ninja took her mask off delicately, revealing a soft smile and gentle face.

"Angel?!"

She smiled and bowed to them politely. "Welcome, Kim. Yoko." Her voice had gone back to its soft lilting quality as opposed to the gruff, distorted sound from earlier.

Kim closed her eyes. Whatever the heck was happening could not be real. When she opened her eyes, she would be back in bed, sleeping soundly, about to go to her evals. And _not_ in this crazy place with ninjas for goodness sake! She would rather have Anna and her cronies kidnap them and beat them to a pulp than be sitting here right now. At least _that_ was reality.

Any minute now… Any. Minute. Now…

She opened her eyes and still found the same décor. Kim let out a rough breath through her nostrils.

She laughed incredulously, "Okay so I don't know what's going on here, but I'd really like to go back to bed, so if you would be so kind as to let me go back to my room and sleep, that'd be really cool."

"You must be wondering why you are here." Angel stated, a secretive little smile on her face.

Neither of the girls said anything, just staring at Angel in absolute confusion. Was this seriously happening right now?

"I do believe an explanation is in order." She continued.

Kim was in CrazyTown. She was absolutely sure of it. Man! She knew her getting accepted to Otai was suspicious.

She rotated her wrists, trying to gauge how tough and sharp the rope was and how tightly it had been knotted around her wrists. They were basically jammed together and there wasn't really enough space for leeway to try to escape the bind. It wouldn't be easy to try to unknot without making noise either. Luckily for her, Yoko spoke up.

"Why are there a bunch of frickin ninja on the walls? Are we in some movie or something?"

Kim tried to see if she could dislocate her wrist and pull it out. But quite frankly, she didn't have enough guts to even _try_ something that painful. And she didn't even know where she was. Injuring herself when she was already at a disadvantage could be deadly. One of the knots _was_ more loose though, so she carefully began to shift it.

"Ninja?" Angel looked confused, but then chuckled, "Well… I guess I can see where you would get that idea from." She pulled the stretchy material away from her abdomen and looked at it, "We _are_ wearing black after all. But we are not ninja per se."

"They are female assassins." A booming voice interrupted.

Kim and Yoko both snapped their heads to the side where the interrupter entered through one of the sliding doors. The women all bowed as the Headmaster entered, a not quite smile on his face.

"And their job is to rid the world of wrongdoing. And this," he gestured to the large dojo surrounding them, "Is their breeding ground."

Again, both girls were speechless, staring at the Headmaster as if he had grown two heads. Kim was absolutely flabbergasted. As if coming here wasn't surreal enough. _Assassins? _It sounded so farfetched. Either everyone here was on drugs or this was really a fucked up place…

Kim frowned, "Is this a joke?"

"It is not a joke, young Kim." A small, middle aged woman with long white-gray hair wearing a kimono stepped through the space between them and joined her companions at the head of the room. Kim jumped in her seat. She had soundlessly come from behind them. Kim hadn't even realized she was there. It was like she had no presence. "Otai is considered a school for exceptional martial artists, but there is a side only a handful of people know about. A small, elite group in Otai is dedicated to training in the deadly martial arts in order to protect innocence and defend justice. Only a few females are admitted entrance to that group. Provided they meet the criteria."

It sounded like some bad line from a superhero movie. Kim wholeheartedly wanted to believe this was fiction, but judging from the faces of those in front of her, she knew this was absolutely real. Kim yanked harder on knot, forcing her face to remain neutral when the rough material dug into her wrist.

"What were the criteria?" Yoko questioned suspiciously, "I don't remember taking any test."

The Headmaster smiled, the wrinkles around his eyes crinkling in a rather disturbing, and menacing way, "There is no test. Selection is chosen by me, based off of whether or not I deem the students worthy."

Kim's eyes narrowed slightly. _So he bases his choices off of whether or not he can use someone for his own gains. _She rotated her wrist once more and slowly, painstakingly pried her hand through one of the bigger loops of the knot. After that, the knot came undone rather quickly, and she quickly gripped the rope in her hand so it wouldn't fall to the floor. Now how would she untangle her legs? She could try to break the chair, but both her legs were attached and she couldn't think of any way to do such a maneuver without injuring herself in the process.

"I'm sorry. But I don't want to be a part of this assassin thing." She glared at them, "First of all, I refuse to kill anyone. And second, this is _crazy_. I don't know what you guys have been sipping in your tea, but I seriously think you need to get your heads checked."

The woman she did not know spoke up, her tone light and airy, "I guess this must sound absolutely ridiculous to you. But how do I put this… It's not so much you get to choose the life. The life, rather, chooses you."

Kim frowned, "That makes no sense at all."

The woman tilted her head, "Young Kim, did you not already untie the knot and free your arms? It would seem your partner did as well."

Kim's cheeks turned red, and she tried not to show her surprise. How did the woman know if she was in front of her? Both Kim and Yoko gave each other glances before slowly pulling their hands to the front of their laps.

The woman chuckled tonelessly, "You see, you already have the skills for this kind of life. And coming to this school, we could already see your potential. You confirmed it earlier today."

"What exactly do you ninja assassins do though?" Yoko didn't sound put off and Kim turned to look at her, alarmed. Was she actually interested in this?

Angel stepped forward, smiling wryly, "What do you think assassins do? This work is not for the weak hearted. To be specific, we are what you might call eliminators. We end nefarious schemes in various parts of the world. I guess, maybe like superheroes or something."

Kim's eyes narrowed, "You mean like vigilantes. You rationalize your own warped sense of justice by terminating those you deem wrongdoers. In essence, you're just a bunch of killers."

Yoko's eyes darted to her in surprise at her harsh words. Kim felt the temperature drop several degrees. It seemed as if everyone was holding their breath. But she didn't care. She would not be part of this criminal group. Her good mood had officially been dampened, and she definitely didn't want to stay here any longer.

The Headmaster stepped forward, his gray eyes turned to hardened steel, though he had a small smile to his face, "Justice is relative, Kim. And if our methods mean the end of a human trafficking scheme at the cost of a few immoral characters, then I'll gladly be a killer. Killers, we may be, but even we follow a moral code."

"I'm disinclined to agree." She riposted caustically.

His smile grew, but the dead look in his eyes didn't disappear. He let out a sharp bark of laughter that shook the room. Angel looked uneasy in the background.

"I see." He shook his head, "I suppose you still stand by your decision to deny the invitation."

She responded with a glare and rubbed her wrists, loosening them up from the rough handling she had given them.

"Yoko?" he asked, still giving Kim that unnerving smile.

"I'm in." She stated boldly.

It was Kim's turn to glance at her in shock. She wanted to be part of this crap group? But then again, no wonder. Her shocked glance quickly turned to one of disgust. Was she in that much of a want to fight that she had no qualms tarnishing her ledger just for a bit of a thrill? But Yoko's face didn't have that cocky smile or manic smirk on it. She looked rather serious.

The Headmaster's smile grew imperceptibly menacing, "Excellent Yoko." He turned away from them both and snapped his fingers twice. "Sensei. Untie them please and escort them out. The rest of you get back to training. Angel, come with me."

Angel bowed to the older woman in the kimono and slipped her mask back on, following him out. The rest of the girls along the walls walked out their respective sliding doors. To say Kim was really confused was an understatement. Was that it? They were just free to go?

"What's the catch?"

He turned back around and regarded her coolly over his shoulder, "There is no catch. Just a request that you think it over again."

"That will never happen." She seethed.

He chuckled, but didn't turn around as he left with Angel. Kim was mad. The last little laugh had felt like he had been laughing at her resolve or patting her on the head for being such a rebellious little dog or something. As if he _knew_ she was still going to join, even though she had clearly rejected the offer.

But Kim wasn't going to lie. She had been worried with how he would react to her talking back. Clearly the Headmaster was no one that ought to be messed with. She had probably risked her head by being so headstrong.

The older lady walked over to them and gently began to untie their ankles.

"I apologize for treating you so roughly and tying you to these chairs. It's just a measure we take to ensure our offer is completely heard. In the past, we've had runners."

Yoko glanced at her suspiciously, "I'm sorry, who are you?"

The older woman looked up at them with warm cherry brown eyes, and though Kim didn't want to, she felt more at ease for some reason. There was something disarming about her gaze. Something so melancholic it put the fighter in Kim to bed.

"I currently have no name. I gave it away when I became who I am today. Most just call me Sensei. I am the trainer of this group, and throughout the day, I teach the lessons of advanced jujutsu, judo, and sword techniques. Occasionally, I'm a librarian or a nurse. And if you need me to be, I can be your temporary mother. I am no longer married, and my child has been gone for some time now."

Yoko rolled her eyes, "Geez. I wasn't asking for a freakin' dissertation on your life."

Sensei chuckled lightly, a thin breathless sound that sounded a bit foreign, since there was not a smile on her face. This woman probably didn't laugh much. Or smile.

Sensei finished untying their ankles before standing up gracefully, rearranging her clothes. "Come along you two."

She walked agilely, with long, even steps, forcing the two girls to move quickly to keep up with her. Kim didn't understand how such a short woman could walk so briskly. She brought them through the sliding door on the right and took them through a maze of corridors before coming to a stop in front of two elevator doors.

"Take this elevator up. It will bring you to the nurse's office. Do not worry about excuses. Just walk straight to your room." Her gaze turned soft once again, "You've had a long evening. I can understand how today must have been a bit too much. I wish you luck tomorrow at your evaluations."

She turned back around and left Kim and Yoko to enter and take the elevator back. Kim didn't really want to think about all that had recently happened, but she had a tough decision to make. If she stayed in this school, she definitely wouldn't join the crazy group, but she didn't trust the Headmaster in the least. He seemed like the type to punish rejecters. Maybe even kill them. Maybe it would be best if she altogether left the school and forfeited her spot, though it seemed like such a wasted opportunity.

They walked out of the nurse's office and saw that they were around the area where HM's office had been. Remembering how Angel had taken them to their room, they followed that path from earlier. Judging by the large grandfather clock near the stairwell, it was almost one. Had they really been gone for that long? Kim guessed time had a way of flying by down there. Plus, there was the fact that she wasn't sure for how long she had been out cold. Not to mention it was hours past curfew. Wouldn't the patrollers ask questions? Well… Sensei _had_ said to not worry about excuses. Kim wondered what had been done for them to get away with walking around after curfew.

"There's a lot of bad shit going on in the world, you know?"

Kim's eyebrows went up slightly, and she turned to Yoko, not expecting her to say anything, especially something like that so out of the blue.

"What?"

Yoko continued to look straight ahead, her face looking stiff. "We've been given the chance to help make it better."

Oh. That's what she was referring to.

Kim frowned, "By killing targets? How is that better?"

Yoko shrugged. "They're getting the easy way out. No life imprisonment. No torture. Besides," she smirked, "Don't you feel a sense of satisfaction when an asshole gets what's coming to him?"

"You're _disgusting_."

"Whatever Blondie. If you're too chicken to join the group, then don't join. But I'm not going to sit in this school doing nothing while families are destroyed because of some assholes when I have a chance to help." Her fists were tightly clenched, and Yoko's breathing had gotten harsh. Clearly there was something that was bugging her that made her make this decision. "I think it's for a noble cause."

Kim's eyes narrowed, "A corrupted one maybe. The ends don't justify the means. Especially means like those."

Yoko didn't answer, and they made their way back to their room quickly and quietly. None of the hall patrollers questioned them or asked why they were off of their floor, so they didn't have to say anything. Kim was glad. If she was tired before, she was absolutely exhausted now. Especially after all she had learned about the school recently.

She knew she had to make a decision on whether to stay soon. Before classes really kicked in and started. Sighing, she slipped under her covers once again. At times like these, she really needed Jack's advice. But she couldn't tell him about what she had learned of the school. Something told her this was one secret she should keep to herself. She just needed some reassurance.

"He's awake, right?" she whispered to herself.

She pulled out her cell phone from the corner of her bed and opened her email. He had sent her one earlier that she hadn't had the chance to read yet.

_From: jbrewer  
To: kcrawford_

_Morning Kim,_

_How was your first day? You promised you'd send me pictures, but you haven't sent me a single one. Typical. You always forget stuff…_

_Anyway the guys and I are doing fine. It's kind of weird in the dojo now. There's way too much testosterone. We need some estrogen._

_We've got more students now. A lot of them are girls strangely enough. Milton says it has something to do with and I quote "all the sexy men in the dojo". I swear those are his words, not mine. Jerry said that there are more female students now because you're no longer here to scare them away from me with your crazy female hormones. Again, his words, not mine._

_I know it's probably really early where you are, but I just wanted to give you a bit of an update. I know it's only been about three days since you left, but it feels like it's been a year._

_I miss you,  
Jackie Poo_

Kim smiled, laughing quietly to herself. He always managed to make her feel better.

_From: kcrawford  
To: jbrewer _

_Evening Jack,_

_I miss you too. Like a lot._

_I DIDN'T FORGET. I'm literally exhausted after a hellish day. I promise sometime tomorrow I'll email you all the pictures and give you more details on the school. It's just that… phones are pretty much prohibited in this school so I can't just whip it out. Especially because they're supposed to be confiscated. I lied to keep mine. Yeah I know… But I don't care. That's just some crazy bullshit to take someone's phone away. _

_And those girls better stay away from you. Just because I'm in Japan, doesn't mean I can't kick their asses from all the way over here._

_But enough of that._

_My first day was… interesting. Actually that's what I'm emailing you about. I don't really have time to talk because I'm tired, but Jack. This school. It's just… it's weird. It's just kind of crazy, and I wish I could tell you why, but I can't… At least, not in a way that would make any sense._

_I don't know. I don't know if I want to stay here anymore. It was my dream to attend this school, but now that I'm here, it's not all it's cracked up to be. Maybe I should give it time, but I don't want to be miserable. What do you think I should do?_

_XOXOX,  
Kim_

His reply came a few minutes later.

_From: jbrewer  
To: kcrawford_

_Kim,_

_Jeez. Already a rebel and classes haven't even started yet for you?_

_Kim… everything in life always starts out difficult. Look at us. Our relationship wasn't a smooth ride from the start either. Hell, it still isn't smooth what with you always thinking you're right (when you're not). Think about it like an airplane. You have to experience turbulence during takeoff before you get to smooth sailing._

_I know you can get past this rough patch. Stay. I'm sure you'll discover something amazing in the school. You're in frickin Japan! That sure has got to beat Seaford High. _

_You're tough. You'll make it. And if the school still doesn't work for you, kick its ass and storm out of there, but not until you've given it a real chance. You can do it._

_I hope this sort of helps._

_From: kcrawford  
To: jbrewer _

_Jack,_

_Thanks. It did._

_Goodnight._

Kim placed her phone back under the corner of the futon next to her small silver ring and rolled over onto her side. She would give the school another try. She would try to forget about what had happened earlier tonight and start from scratch tomorrow.

~.~.~

Sensei picked up her tea and took a delicate sip, waiting, as her companion took a seat on the tatami mat across from her. The room was lit only by the single candle in between them. She couldn't see anything but the jagged shadows cast on his face. She set her cup down and poured him a cup of tea politely, and he comfortably rearranged himself.

"You're late."

He smirked, "I had some business to attend to. Disturbances at my school are not tolerated."

She rose an eyebrow, waiting for the conclusion.

"They've being taken care of." he replied ominously.

He picked up his tea and took a sip.

"Well?"

He glanced at her over his cup of tea, almost arrogantly. She knew he was goading her.

"Stop patronizing me." she growled. "Tell me what your plans are for the girl. That _is_ the reason you called me here, is it not?"

"And by the girl, I assume you mean, Kim?"

"She is a great addition to this school. We don't need to lose any more students. In addition, her potential for success outside of the group is high." Sensei knew exactly what would happen to Kim. Those students who rejected the offer, choosing to remain as normal students never would live past the next month. No one was to know Otai's secret. They were to take it with them to their grave. For those who rejected, unfortunately, that meant an early grave.

He set down his tea cup, and if she didn't know any better, the motion would have seemed calm and controlled. But she did know better. And he was anything but. He was angry, she could tell. Especially earlier today. When Kim had insulted their group and ideals, in a way, she had unintentionally insulted his own pride. Sensei hoped he did not seek vengeance.

Her breath was released when he sat back on his legs coolly and smirked, "There is nothing to do."

Her eyes narrowed, "What do you mean?"

"She'll join eventually anyway." His eyes glinted mysteriously before his lips turned down, and he regarded Sensei with empty gray eyes, "And you're going to make sure of that."

* * *

***kanji: adopted Chinese characters that are used in modern Japanese writing  
*Honbu: literally means headquarters in Japanese lol so the name of their headquarters is headquarters. hehehe I was too lazy to try to come up with a name for the "hideout".**

**So I had this idea that Jack and Kim would write emails to each other as if they're writing letters cuz they're cute like that and that's why the end of this chapter was written that way.**

**Hope it was enjoyable! Thank you :)**


	4. The Strength in Courage

**********************Story: Of Spies and Assassins  
Rating: High T (for foul language, suggestive themes, and violence; will become M in the future)  
Summary: Kim went to the Otai Academy expecting to learn martial arts. Little did she know Otai is a school that trains assassins. She is forced to forget her past and pushes it out of her mind. Until suddenly, she's thrown back into a world she thought she had given up. Kick AU**

******Thank you for the kind reviews! You all are very sweet :)**

******Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It and am merely using the characters for my and your entertainment.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 3:**

_Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear – not absence of fear.  
~__Mark Twain  
_

_Three months later..._

The student proctor blew her whistle, signifying the end of morning spar and Kim and Yoko let go of each other, panting heavily. Today's session had consisted of grappling and had a focus on technique. Unfortunately, Kim had never really learned grappling, but Yoko was almost genius level, so Kim continued to find herself thrown about by her rough partner. Though she was definitely improving, she could tell. She hadn't lost to Yoko in a grappling match in over a week now. At least she was much better at general sparring.

Kim flattened out on her back onto the mat with a long sigh of relief, accepting the water bottle Yoko gave her.

"You're getting better at this grappling thing." Yoko smirked.

"Well, I can't let you beat me forever, can I?" she responded, chugging half of her water in one fell swoop. After this, she would get some breakfast and then try to sneak in an email to Jack before heading to her meditation session.

Yoko plopped down beside her, "You know you should really reconsider."

Kim sighed in annoyance and sat up, "Not this crap again. I told you I'm not joining. Back off and leave me alone."

"If you join, you'd have much better training than the plain stuff they put us through during classes."

"I don't know if you've noticed, Yoko, but my schedule is _advanced_. There's nothing plain about what I'm learning."

Yoko's lip curled, "I don't understand why you wouldn't want such a good position Blondie. Plus we learn way cooler stuff."

"Shut up." Kim turned away, and began to wipe down the mats per routine. She didn't want to have this conversation anymore. Yoko had been pestering her about it for the past months and really, it was starting to get on Kim's nerves. She was not joining the group. And quite frankly, she didn't want to be in it. Why was Yoko so adamant for her to join anyway?

"Man, you're so lame…" Yoko scoffed and rolled her eyes, beginning the cleaning as well.

Sensei walked up to both of them, "Good morning ladies."

Scrambling to their feet, they quickly bowed politely to her, responding with similar greetings.

"Yoko, you may head to breakfast without Kim. I would like to speak with her about something."

She nodded and headed off, but not before she shot Kim a disgusted sneer. Kim returned the look with a lethal glare of her own.

"I sense some consternation between you and your partner." Sensei's eyes were alight with amusement, though Kim noted, she still was not smiling.

"We just had an argument again."

"May I ask what about?"

"About the whole vigilante business." Sensei nodded, looking pensive, "Look with all due respect Sensei, if that's what you came to talk with me about, I'd rather we just skipped the conversation to save time and energy. I'm not joining."

Sensei's thin chuckles peeled out, "Young Kim, it's best to not jump to conclusions. I am here to recruit you for a mission."

"I'm so sorry." Kim blushed red from slight embarrassment. Then, she paused. "A mission?"

"Yes. Day-to-day operations at Otai, in addition to instructing in martial arts, include providing protection, recon, and other services to those who require it, just outside of what we vigilantes do. There is no assassination involved. Generally, that is a privilege given only to top fourth year students with exceptional marks. However, the Headmaster requested that _you_ accompany me on this mission."

Her eyebrows shot up. "But I'm a second year. And technically, I'm not even a first year since I've only been here a few months."

"Years don't matter in this school much. Especially if skill is top tier. Do you doubt your skills?"

"No, but…"

Sensei put a hand on Kim's shoulder and squeezed gently. "It's not anything too difficult. Don't worry. And do not fear. This has nothing to do with our assassin group."

"Why was I chosen out of the many that could have been picked?"

"That's a good question. And if I had the time to answer it, I would." Her eyes glittered in amusement, "Meet me in my office in ten minutes. Go grab yourself something to eat and change into other clothes. All we're doing is reconnaissance, so don't worry about your choice. Something comfortable and inconspicuous would do well."

Sensei turned away before Kim could ask any more questions, and she was left to stare at her retreating back in confusion. She was really about to go on some covert mission? Like actually? Never in her wildest dreams had she ever believed something of this caliber would happen. Otai was full of surprises.

"Nine minutes, Kim." Sensei called out.

Still trying to get used to the fact that this was actually going to happen and that this was a real event, she blinked, staring off into space. She was going on some mission, as if she were a spy. It was… admittedly thrilling.

Once she had gotten her stuff, she brought herself to the lovely oak doors of the room adjacent to the library. Before she could knock, they swung open, and Sensei pulled her in.

"Right on time. Excellent."

Kim had only been in this office a few times before to request supplementary material to study grappling, but the sheer size of the office never failed to surprise her. Unlike HM's office, Sensei's was brightly lit as the grand red curtains were drawn. It was spacious and crammed with books on every shelf and surface. Some books looked like they were falling apart at the seams while others were fresh and yet to be opened. It seemed that Sensei had accumulated even more books since the last time Kim had been in there a few months back. There were glass shelves adorning the walls, each holding a weapon from ancient Japan. They had the look of an antique and were definitely well worn, but it was obvious that they were very well taken care of. Kim wondered if the weapons were used on a regular basis.

"Young Kim, the time to ogle my office will come eventually. But we really haven't any time. Come along."

She was wondering where they were headed off to, when Sensei suddenly pulled a book from the bookshelf on the far wall and the bookshelf turned, revealing a hidden pathway.

"Of course…" Kim mumbled under her breath. This school was really messed up…

She followed Sensei's brisk pace, speed walking to keep up with the shorter woman. Really. It didn't make any sense that she could walk that rapidly when her legs were so small!

The pathway led, surprisingly, to a large underground parking deck where Kim assumed the school vehicles were stored. She had honestly thought they would end up in some crazy underground sewage tunnel system that would lead them to a secret hideout or through a waterfall. There was a driver standing next to the open doors of a sleek black car. Sensei ushered her in, before climbing in after her. Once the driver had situated himself in the car, they went on their way.

"Where are we going?"

"A local town near the perimeter of our school grounds." Sensei glanced at Kim, "Good. You're wearing close toed shoes. Now, I told you you are doing nothing but reconnaissance, correct?"

"Yeah."

"What you are observing, I will not tell you. For I want your mind unbiased and looking for everything, as opposed to one thing."

"Um, I don't want to ask too many questions, but where am I supposed to go? What am I supposed to do? What's my purpose? I'm really confused…"

"Details will only bog down the mind, young Kim." Sensei turned to her momentarily, "Since this is your first mission, I don't want you thinking about specifics because it will make you focus on the wrong things. Use your instincts. However, I would like to mention to you that I will be doing my own part of the mission elsewhere. I want you to do your recon as succinctly and best as you can."

The car stopped, and Kim exited the vehicle along with Sensei. The morning air was crisp with dew, but had a lingering heat that alerted Kim to the fact that it would most likely become very humid and very hot in the next few hours.

The driver saluted Sensei after she nodded at him, and he left. They were in the outskirts of a small town. It wasn't classified as a village per se, but it certainly wasn't anything huge. There was only one rough road traveling through the inside of the town. It wasn't bustling with activity, but it wasn't empty either.

"Young Kim. Are you prepared?"

"Um not really… Where am I supposed to go?"

But there was no response. When she turned back to where Sensei had been standing, no one was there. She blinked and turned in the other direction, but there was no one. Sensei had really left Kim all by herself. And she had disappeared like some damn ninja to boot!

"This has got to be a joke…" Kim laughed nervously. So now she was stranded somewhere she didn't know with no one who she knew and she was just supposed to _figure out_ what she was supposed to do on her own? Sensei had said to do recon, but of what? Was she just supposed to note whatever?

At the very least, she should find a place to sit down and plan her next course of action. In those spy movies she used to watch, coffee shops were always the best starting place to look for clues. Maybe she'd find someone who could help give her an idea of what she was supposed to be looking for. With that thought in mind, she walked through the street.

The street was aligned with small shops and little apartments. It was still fairly early in the morning, so she figured most places wouldn't be open yet, but the lingering smell of coffee and freshly baked bread told her that days had already begun. Maybe this was a tourist town.

Some of the early morning walkers turned and looked at her in interest. No doubt she stuck out like a sore thumb. She ducked her head and walked quickly toward the smell of the coffee. How was she supposed to do inconspicuous recon if she was obviously quite visible wherever she went?

It brought her to a quaint outdoor café in which heavenly smells were drifting about. Her stomach growled imperceptibly. She hadn't had nearly enough to eat for breakfast. What was wrong with stopping for a little snack? She was glad she had brought her wallet too, because she could have been going on an empty stomach.

She walked to the vendor and smiled as unassumingly as she could. It would do no good to garner suspicions.

"Good morning. I'm a little lost, and I don't know much Japanese. Do you speak English by any chance?"

The vendor regarded her quietly for a second before smiling and nodding, replying with an accent. "This _is_ a tourist spot after all. What would you like?"

She let out a sigh of relief she didn't even realize she had been holding. She didn't know what she would have done if he had said no.

"One plain coffee please. And one of those delicious looking scones."

He set to work getting her food. As she waited, Kim looked around her. There were a couple of patrons sitting in the chairs outside, reading books or newspapers. From the vantage point of the chairs outside, she could easily watch the street and see rather far. Not only that, but the coffee shop was in a wider area which gave way to a wider part of the town. Perfect.

"That will be 611 yen*."

She paid him and thanked him when he handed her her items. Taking a seat outside, she picked up a newspaper—not that she could understand any of it— that had been left behind and began to scout. Sensei had said to do recon. So recon, she would do. It wasn't Kim's fault if it was crappy. She peeled over a corner of the newspaper and watched the street as she nibbled nonchalantly on her scone. There were more people out now, everyone busy with their lives, but for the most part, there didn't seem to be anything suspicious going on.

She sighed in annoyance. Was she just supposed to sit there for ages? How was she supposed to meet back up with Sensei? This wasn't one of those crazy initiations where people left you to fend for yourself and get back to the campus on your own, was it? Kim groaned. That would be just her luck to end up with some stupid trial like that. She set down the newspaper in exasperation.

It was just as that thought crossed her mind that she noticed a woman walking down the street. Under normal circumstances, she would have ignored her, because she looked like everyone else on the street. She wasn't dressed flashily, nor was she particularly outstanding. But there was something odd with the way she carried herself. She was hunched over, stiff and shifty eyed. She kept looking around nervously, as if she was looking for someone. Or watching out for someone…

Kim set her cup down and crumpled up her trash. She certainly didn't have a clue what recon was and quite frankly, she didn't know what the hell she was doing, but something told her she should follow the woman.

Slipping out of her seat quietly, she threw out her garbage and walked slowly a few paces behind the woman. She sipped her cup nonchalantly, pretending to just be sauntering around the town, looking at the scenery. She kept a shrewd eye on the woman, being careful to note when the woman would slow and turn around to look over her shoulder. Kim wasn't stupid enough to try to hide, so she would just scratch her head and pretend to be lost. As she walked though, she made sure to note where she was headed. She figured they had entered into a more professional business area of the town. There were more people bustling hurriedly to get to work.

The woman suddenly looked over her shoulder in a last ditch effort before slipping into an alley between a warehouse and small apartment complex. Kim frowned and snuck to the corner, peering into the alleyway. The woman was sneaking into an open window on the side.

Kim's pulse began to race. She was intrigued as to why the woman was sneaking into the warehouse in the first place, but she could be getting into something seriously messed up. Sensei had only told her to observe and note what was happening. She might seriously be getting herself into some danger.

Swallowing thickly, she walked into the alley and grabbed the sill, pulling herself slightly up to peer into the window. There was a long hallway leading further in. Kim had to make a choice: follow the woman and possibly put herself in danger or don't follow the woman and possibly miss out on something important. Making up her mind, Kim dropped her cup on the ground and slid a crate below the window and clambered on. She tried to find one last reason why she shouldn't go, but her curiosity overtook her reservations, and she climbed into the window.

It wasn't wide enough to easily maneuver, but it wasn't that small either, so Kim managed to slip her leg through after she pushed her torso in. She ended up in an awkward split-like position and had to move carefully so as not to fall on her face.

When she finally broke free and landed on her feet, she let out a sigh of relief. Anyone could have walked by while she was having trouble and seen her.

"Thank God I'm flexible…" she muttered.

The warehouse wasn't lit very well, so she couldn't tell exactly where she was supposed to go. She followed along the hallway, hearing her heart beating loudly in her ears. The hallway she walked down soon opened wider to three other hallways and she found herself wondering where the heck to go. One of them had an exit sign, so she scratched out that one, but the other two, she had no idea.

Well, she would just have to guess.

She took the straight direction and continued to walk slowly against the wall. She avoided a fire extinguisher placed haphazardly on the ground and continued along the way, noting it to remind her that that was the way she had come. Eventually, the concrete floor of the hallway soon gave way to some wooden boarded planks, as if construction hadn't been completed. She slowed her gait and was careful to make sure she didn't cause them to squeak or groan. Because she could hear voices.

The corridor gave way to a wide, unconstructed space with a few pipes and foundation pillars sticking out of the ground. Kim frowned. The woman she had followed earlier was standing in the center, surrounded by men in pristine black suits. A man in a navy suit was standing in front of her with an irritated look on his face.

There was a slight protrusion on the right hips of most of the men in the suits. Kim figured those were guns and swallowed thickly. This looked like a bad confrontation. She strained to hear what they were saying without stepping out and exposing herself.

"What do you mean, you went to get fresh air?"

The woman was shaking, "I-I just wanted to see the r-river…"

Letting out an angry sigh, the man in the navy suit stood up briskly and grabbed the woman's hair, roughly yanking it up and pulling her forward. She cried out and gripped her roots to try to alleviate the pain. Kim's eyes widened.

"You wanted to see the river?" he snarled, "Who gave you permission to leave? You're being sold tomorrow. You are to stay here with the other wenches."

Kim frowned. _Sold?_ She had read about something like this in a book once. Human trafficking… Is that what this was? She held her gasp in. This was absolutely real.

"Can't you have a little pity?" the woman squeaked out, her voice shaking.

The suited man slapped her harshly across the face, and she let out a cry.

Kim felt her blood boil. This was abominable. There was something illegal going on here, and she had to stop it. Her fists clenched tightly and she shook with concealed rage. She couldn't stand here and watch this. She wanted to intervene and stop this mess, but there were six black suits, and they all probably had guns.

Kim had to get out of there. She had to go find help. And fast. She backed up slowly, carefully making sure that she didn't make some involuntary noise on the wooden boards on the ground and alert all the men to the fact that she was eavesdropping. She didn't doubt that if she was caught, her head would end up on a plate.

When she looked down, she saw that she was no longer on the rickety surface and had returned to the concrete floor. Kim was about to turn around to start walking faster, when her foot nudged something hard, and she heard it tumble to the ground. It hit the floor with a clang and rolled away, scratching against the floor loudly, before hitting the opposite wall with a reverberating '_Ping!'_.

_The fire extinguisher from earlier! Crap!_

Kim heard the talking cease as the noise reverberated around the room. She couldn't very well sit still now and try to exit quietly. They were probably all being dispatched right now. She turned around swiftly on the ball of her feet and raced back, following the red exit sign at the top of certain corridors. She saw the front of the large warehouse and let out a deep sigh of relief, slowing to a walk and trying to appear nonchalant. She thought she was home free and almost cheered in excitement, when two men came out of nowhere and blocked off the door. Kim skidded to a stop and then looked over her shoulder. Go figure. There were a couple people blocking the path behind her as well.

Kim sighed and closed her eyes. This could not be happening right now. After sixteen short years of life, she would be extinguished. She knew she couldn't very well fight all five of the men. Sure, she was confident in her abilities, but even she wasn't stupid enough to try to take on all five like that. And they had guns.

"What do you think you're doing?"

_Think Kim. Think!_

She didn't have any weapons or anything, but she had to have _something_ at her disposal that could help her case! She scratched her head, ruffling her hair in an attempt to clear her jumbled mind. Her hair got caught in one of her fingers, and she pulled a little too hard, wincing. And then…

It came to her.

"We asked you a question." One of them said ominously.

Kim put on her dopiest smile and smacked her palm to her forehead, "Like, I _knew_ I was totally lost! OMGEE! I was like, totes looking for a bathroom and like totes saw this hot guy in a business suit so I like totally followed him!" she giggled obnoxiously and felt satisfaction when the men grimaced at the loud, cringe worthy noise.

"But then I like totally got lost! And then I had to pee again so I was totally just walking around to find the bathroom, but I like totally ran into something and I was totes just gonna leave because I totes couldn't find the bathroom and my group is like totally gonna leave for the airport without me cuz our vacation like totally ends today and I've totes got school tomorrow, but you know, I like totally dropped my camera in the river and now I like totally can't find it so my friend was saying that she would like totes get me a new one, but before we like totally had the chance to go to the electronic store, I like totally had to pee, which OMGEE was _totes_ embarrassing cuz my crush was totally right behind us, so I told her—"

"Enough!" One guy bellowed, irritation laced entirely through his face.

Kim held her breath, hoping that she had sold her act. Her life was probably riding on this. "Um, that was like totally rude. Like the least you could do is listen to my story, cuz I like _totes_ am about to burst."

"Shut up!" He pinched the bridge of his nose, "Why are you so damn annoying?" He pointed behind him to the door, "There is a restroom in the building right across from us. Get out of here. And don't let us catch your face in here again."

She smiled brightly, "Like totes thanks! I thought I was totally gonna have to like totally blow my pants!"

She skipped past the two men in front of her and out of the warehouse, her heart hammering as they watched her. She went into the building across that he had mentioned and kept skipping, right into the women's restroom. She didn't stop until she actually got into a stall. She slammed the door shut and leaned her forehead against it, her heart battering against her chest painfully. She was shaking and she tried to stop her shivering hand by clenching and unclenching her fists.

That had been one of the most frightening experiences of her life. Kim let out a shaky breath, trying to calm her nerves. She had gotten away. She had gotten away. She had gotten away.

Kim chanted those words like a mantra, cooling her shaken nerves.

Straightening, she took a deep breath and left the bathroom and the building, walking with purpose back towards the way she had come. She didn't know how to find Sensei, but she knew she had to get back to Otai.

Just as the thought crossed her mind, a sleek black car pulled up in front of her. She jumped, still not quite back to her usual self. The door opened to reveal Sensei in the back seat. The sigh of relief that left Kim's mouth was all-encompassing, and she felt it through her entire body.

"Oh… it's just you."

"Climb in." Sensei said.

She hopped in the car, grateful when the driver sped off. She turned to Sensei, "Look, I've gotta tell you something. There is something pretty messed up going on in this town."

Sensei nodded, "Yes indeed."

"So you know about the human trafficking thing? We have to go back and help them! We have to end the scheme!"

"They've been on our radar for a while now. We suspected it would be as such."

Kim's eyes widened. If the Headmaster already knew what the deal was, why had they sent her to do recon?

Kim frowned, "Why did you need me to do recon, then? I almost got killed!" So maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but she really had been in danger, "And what are you going to do about it now that it's true?"

"Young Kim, the reason you ended up doing recon was so that we could see the situation from a different angle. Any information from anyone helps. We needed someone who was off the radar and quick thinking who hadn't been exposed to any kind of spy-like work. The thing you discovered? We have been searching for the base for months but couldn't find it or figure out where it was. You proved to be that person we needed."

"But I couldn't stop them or anything. And they saw me and almost captured me."

"But you succeeded in gathering info, did you not? Not to mention you are back here alive."

Kim shook her head, "I just don't see why I was picked for this when a more trained and ready person would have been better. Maybe if it hadn't been me, the woman wouldn't have gotten hurt… I could have fought…" She thought back to the image she had seen and involuntarily shuttered. "If I was stronger… maybe…"

Kim remembered what Yoko had told her earlier that morning. Better training in the group… Maybe that was what she needed.

Sensei's hand came on her shoulder gently, and Kim stared at her. Sensei smiled serenely then and Kim's eyes widened. She had never seen a smile on Sensei's lips before and it was beautiful. It lit up her face in a most tranquil way that just seemed to shine. It was luminous. A small smile also appeared on Kim's face.

"Anyone can demonstrate strength, young Kim. Anyone can gain strength if they strive for it. But courage... _True_ a few possess. You, young Kim, are one of the few I've ever encountered with true courage." The smile left her face, but she still looked serene, "It's a shame you do not want to join our group. You are the exact type of hidden rose that we need."

"What if…" Kim sighed dejectedly, not quite certain what to say or how to say it. "What if I didn't want to be an assassin, but was kind of interested in the group?"

Sensei squeezed her shoulder comfortingly, "We will never send a soldier out on the battlefield untrained. If you are not ready, you need only use your strengths to aid your colleagues. Training lasts quite a while, until you are emotionally and mentally prepared."

"Can I join like a test trial? Just to try it out?"

Sensei nodded, "Stay as long as you want."

"I might need to think about it some more."

The car stopped in the parking deck they had come from, and Sensei put her hand on the handle to exit.

Sensei smiled as she left the vehicle, "That is fine, young Kim. Take all the time you need. You know where I'll be if you change your mind."

Kim also left shortly after and dragged her feet up to her room, ignoring the fact that it was lunch time right now. She just wanted to have time to herself.

She was so glad Yoko wasn't in the room right now. She just didn't want to deal with her. Especially not right after the mission.

But it wasn't because Kim was shaken. Not anymore at least. It was because her blood was pumping madly. She was excited and jumpy and restless. And no doubt, Yoko would have picked up on that and she wouldn't have let it go.

Kim plopped down on her bed, more mentally exhausted than she'd ever been at this school. Or in her life. She pulled out her cellphone. She needed encouragement. She was about to make one of the biggest decisions in her life.

_From: kcrawford  
To: jbrewer_

_Dear Jack,_

_I had my first real "trial" in applying the tactics I've learned in martial arts at this school. Surprisingly, I didn't even need to be rough. It was exhilarating! When I come visit you, I'll tell you what it was like. It's really amazing, learning so many different styles here at this school. I was always so dead set on sticking with one kind of martial arts that I missed other styles. I'm telling you Jack, when you see me, I'll be a new me. And probably stronger than you. :)_

_I found a group that I would like to join at the school. It's a bit of a weird…club, I guess you could say. I'm going to try it out and see what it's like. I won't do everything everyone else is doing in the club, though. They're kind of screwy and I'm not sure I like their goals and motives, but I've seen some good in what they are doing. It makes me want to do some good myself._

_I thought I wouldn't like it, but it's strange Jack. The prospect of using my skills for this club actually excites me. I never thought it would, and I looked down on my roommate for being gung-ho about it, but I feel like deep down, I can't wait to try it too._

_Still no real friends yet, by the way. This school kind of makes it impossible though. There is Yoko, my roommate who I told you about, but she's horrible. I would never want to be friends with her. Not gonna lie. But somehow we keep getting shoved together. Anyway, Jack, I have some stuff to take care of. I'll give you another update soon. _

_Enjoy your lame classes._

_Yours truly,  
Kim_

_P.S: I heard some strange rumour from Jerry that you and Milton kept missing a lot of school for some reason. And then one day you showed up to third period late busted up and bleeding. I hope you're not skipping school to do dangerous things Jack. What's going on?_

_From: jbrewer  
To: kcrawford_

_Dear Kimberly,_

_I'm glad you found a club you can be part of, regardless of whether or not it is weird. I hope you don't forget about your good old club back home though. You know, your wee little club, The Wasabi Warriors? Go out there and show them what you're made of. I can't wait to test out your skills when you get back. Maybe you'll finally be able to beat me, huh Kim?_

_Maybe you don't like Yoko because she's acts a little bit too much like you? Too headstrong and does whatever the hell she wants just because she believes it's right? Doesn't let things go, good or bad and keeps bringing them up? That sounds an awful lot like you Kim. I'm not saying you're as… vulgar, as you made her out to be (so please don't hunt me down), but she definitely kind of sounds like you…_

_You heard some rumours from Jerry and believed him? C'mon Kim. Have a little faith in me. Nothing's going on. I just got in a little fight, that's all. Besides, they were excused absences. Funderburk signed them off, so everything's okay._

___From: kcrawford  
To: jbrewer_

_Dear Jack,_

_Thanks for the encouragement. And sorry for not trusting you._

_But Yoko and I are nothing alike. I mean, if we are, we're still on completely different sides of the spectrum. Maybe one day you'll meet her. And you'll see._

_Oh. And it's so on._

She hit send and then let out a deep breath. She was serious about this. She was going to join, but she would only join to see what it was like. Maybe she was crazy for actually developing a morbid interest in the group, but she trusted Sensei, and she truly felt like it was something she could do. After she had seen that woman get attacked and hadn't been able to do anything about it, Kim could not help but feel like she had failed. She didn't want to be an assassin, but that didn't mean she couldn't join the group to do the right thing and help people. In that way, she could understand why Yoko had wanted to join.

"I can't believe I'm doing this…" she muttered.

After supper, Kim went down to the training room hidden in the bowels of the school. Surprisingly, she recognized a few of the girls standing in a semicircle around Sensei. Tina from Japanese 101, a girl she had seen in their floor showers once, and someone Kim had World Politics with. She hadn't realized these girls were part of this group. It was amazing how people managed to hide their secrets so well. Sensei was standing in front of a few of the girls, addressing them in her resounding baritone.

"The basis of the martial arts in our group is traditional. You don't have to forget your old styles, yet…"

She tapered off as Kim walked across the floor towards them. The other girls noticed Sensei's silence and turned to look at the newcomer. Yoko's lips turned into a feral grin.

Kim stopped short of reaching the semi-circle, "Is there room for one more?"

Sensei nodded, gesturing to an empty spot next to Yoko. Kim could have sworn Sensei was smiling kindly at her, but when she looked back at Sensei, her face was once again impassive.

Yoko nudged her, "Knew you were gonna join."

Kim rolled her eyes, "Shut it. It's not what you think."

"Sure Blondie."

Sensei continued, "As I was saying. The foundation of our training is traditional martial arts…"

~.~.~

"She actually fell for the fake mission?" He laughed heartily, setting down his tea cup to prevent it from spilling over, "She must be way more naïve than I originally assumed. I can't believe she didn't realize everything went too smoothly."

"It was full proof. How could she have known? Regardless, she did exceptionally." Sensei took a sip of tea, watching him with narrowed, suspicious eyes. "And she has joined."

"I'm well aware. You did good work as usual, Sensei."

Setting down the cup of tea she turned the full force of her glare upon him, "And now that she has joined, what exactly are your plans for young Kim?"

"Plans? There are none… as of yet."

Sensei knew there was something off about his smile. He was lying. Or even if he had not planned anything, he definitely knew what he intended to do with her.

"Kim is a good girl."

"Your point, dear Sensei?"

Her brown eyes turned into molten lava and her dead gaze turned nasty. Any other person becoming the target of those eyes would have cowered in fright. He smiled even wider. When she got serious, it was always wonderful to see her anger over take her features. It reminded him of her past brutality.

"Do not hurt her. I will not allow you to corrupt her soul. If you do, I swear to the ends of the earth I will destroy you."

"How frightening."

He took another languid sip of tea, chuckling quietly. Sensei's eyes narrowed, but he ignored her. An assassin who didn't want to do her work was the best kind of assassin there was. So easy to manipulate and perfect for just about any job there was. He had plans for Miss Crawford. Of course, not now. It was much too soon. But given a few years, they'd be perfect. She _and_ her partner.

"My, my. Calm yourself. I have no use of a corrupted student. For now, just watch over her and allow her to grow in her abilities and strength. I look forward to how you nurture her growth, Sensei."

Sensei nodded and took a quiet sip of tea, but her nerves remained. He was plotting. And she knew it. If that was the case, she would do whatever was in her power to protect young Kim. She had seen far too many of those lovely girls transform into beasts. But Kim was different. And Sensei would keep it that way.

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***六百十一円/ro'pyaku jyuu ichi en/611¥: Roughly 6$**

**Hope it was enjoyable! Thank you :)**


	5. Burned Bridges

**Story: Of Spies and Assassins  
Rating: High T (for foul language, suggestive themes, and violence; ****will**** become M in the future)  
Summary: Kim went to the Otai Academy expecting to learn martial arts. Little did she know Otai is a school that trains assassins. She is forced to forget her past and pushes it out of her mind. Until suddenly, she's thrown back into a world she thought she had given up. Kick AU**

**Thank you for the kind reviews! You all are very sweet :)**

**A/N: Prepare yourselves. This might be a bit of a downer.  
**

**Also, I wrote this chapter listening to a mix of Kid Cudi and RHCP, lol. So the vibe might change at different sections of the story. It's amazing how music influences my writing so easily.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kickin' It and am merely using the characters for my and your entertainment.**

* * *

**Chapter 4:  
**

_I demolish my bridges behind me...then there is no choice but to move forward.  
~Fridtjof Nansen_

_Three years later..._

_From: jbrewer  
To: kcrawford_

_Dear Kim,_

_I wish I could come to your graduation ceremony, but I'm totally broke and a ticket to Japan will deplete my life's savings which I'm actually hoping to buy something special with (yes, Kim. The something special will be for you). I wish I could come cheer you on. Regardless, I left Seaford High's graduation ticket in your mailbox at your house. And... your invitation to my graduation party. So when you get back to Seaford, don't forget to pick it up and come over. I'll be waiting._

_It's been almost three years since we last saw each other, and I'm hoping to make this meeting count. Have you decided on anywhere to go to college? I know it works a little differently where you are, but you haven't told me any of your graduation plans yet so I was wondering what the deal was. I chose UCLA because it's closest to home. (Hint: so that's where you should apply to go). Oh yeah. I forgot to mention that I have an official job once I graduate. I can't tell you by email, but I'll let you know what it is when you get back. It's a pretty big secret, but I feel like you're the only one I can tell._

_I can't wait to see your beautiful face Kim. Pictures just aren't the same thing._

_I'm proud of you._

_Love you always,  
Jack_

~.~.~

"Congratulations on your graduation, Kimberly."

Kim eyes were unyielding and blank. "Thank you." She replied emotionlessly. She was sitting in Headmaster's office, summoned after she and other members of her class had just finished their graduation ceremony. It had been a difficult test, rigorous and forced the testers to apply everything they had learned throughout their time in Otai. Kim had passed, but afterward, he had called her in to his office. She didn't know why though. She just wanted to get this over with so she could pack her bags and get back to Seaford. It had been a grueling three years at this school with heavy training, numerous and countless, relentless courses, and demanding teachers, but she had succeeded and now she was ready to leave and continue her life.

He was reading off her transcript, "You've got some high credentials here. Graduated top of your class, teachers all praise your effort and work ethic. You have made some of the highest marks we have ever seen in the school, in fact. I commend your efforts."

She nodded, wishing he would hurry up and get on with it. She had a plane to book and catch.

"However, I do not approve of your efforts in Honbu."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well for one, your improvement seems to have capped. And Sensei has continuously mentioned in her quarter analysis that you seem to lack any motivation to put more effort into your training. Almost like something is holding you back…" he tapered off, giving her a steely glare, "Kim, tell me. When you first joined our little assassin group, how long did you believe it would last?"

"I thought it would just be some short term thing for a few years."

He laughed loudly, a sound that made Kim's skin crawl. She didn't like the way it had sounded. Almost foreboding. She got the sense that whatever he was about to say, she would definitely not like.

"A few years?" he chuckled again, derisively, "You may have graduated from Otai the school, but you sure have not graduated from our group. And you are nowhere near finished with it."

She was silent, her blood beginning to boil.

"I'm eighteen years old." she ground out. "Don't you think it's time for me to move out of this Academy and get to college?"

"You may be old enough to head into college, but your assassin training isn't complete yet. Did you honestly think you would be finished with the training in only three short years? A seasoned assassin takes several years of intense training and work before they are able to officially make their debut. An assassin is made from being torn down and then rebuilt piece by miserable piece."

She snapped up out of her seat, anger evident in her expression, "I only joined to see what it was like! I have no intention of staying in your little group. My life and my family and my friends are in _Seaford_. You can't seriously expect me to just drop it all and stay here for the rest of my life!"

"You are an assassin-in-training, Kimberly. I don't know how you got the idea in your mind that you could just join and quit the group as you please, but that is not the way we do things." His mouth quirked up a little, in amusement or disgust, Kim couldn't tell. "Once you join, you join for life."

"Then when am I ever going to get the chance to see my family again? My friends?" _Jack._

"That is up to you. I am giving you the opportunity to go back to Seaford for one day to make the right decision."

Her eyes narrowed. Something about the way he stated that made her skin stand on end, "And that would be…?

"Kim, you should know what the right decision is by now." He put his chin on the steeple he had formed with his fingers and looked down at her impassively. "Break contact with those you left behind."

Her eyes widened and she took a step back in alarm, "Are you mental?! I'm not about to just throw away my entire past like that."

"This is nonnegotiable, Kim. Break contact and say your goodbyes, or I will do it."

She narrowed her eyes at him, feeling her pulse race. "Are you threatening me?"

"What purpose would threatening my star student serve to do?" He smiled dangerously, "I cannot, however, say the same for your family and friends…"

He tapered off and leaned back in his chair, letting the words sink in. Kim was absolutely shocked. She caught his drift. He was giving her an ultimatum. She had to break contact with those from her past or he would harm them. Kim was trapped. She had had a bad feeling about joining the group and it turned out she was right.

She steeled her nerves and looked him straight in the eye, hoping she wasn't showing any weakness or revealing how scared she felt.

"How long would I have to stay in the group? Until I get good enough to leave."

"Kim, Kim, Kim. You make it sound like it's a temporary joining." He set his hands down against his desk and leaned forward, his gaze turning dark and looming, "I told you already. Once you join, you join for life. So go back to Seaford. And end things with that boyfriend of yours."

Kim froze. How did he know she had a boyfriend?

His eyes shone, as if in amusement, "Come now Kim. You think I couldn't guess why you want to go back? You obviously are waiting to get back to your lover back home. This isn't the first time something like this has happened before, you know."

She swallowed thickly. If he knew about Jack, there was a really high chance that Jack was in danger. She didn't know just how far the Headmaster's reach extended, but she had a sneaking suspicion that he would have no qualms using Jack to get her to do what he wanted.

She swallowed thickly, "I have one day to go to Seaford?"

"Yes. I'll even be generous and let you pick the day."

"Then can I go tomorrow?" Tomorrow was their graduation day.

The corner of the Headmaster's lips quirked up into a hidden smile that made it seem like he knew exactly why Kim had asked that question. "That's fine. Otai's private plane is at your disposal. I expect you back tomorrow with your decision made. Dismissed."

She left the office with a burning sensation in her chest. She was livid. How could he force her to make a decision like this? It was insane how messed up joining one single group had caused her so many problems.

Kim went back to her room angrily storming through the halls and alarming a few students and professors. When she got there, she packed lightly, stuffing a couple things in the small bag she decided to take with her. Yoko walked in slowly, frowning when she saw Kim stuffing a hat into her bag.

"Going on a trip, Blondie?"

Kim stood up and frowned, "Yoko, how long did you think we would be in this little ninja assassin group thing?"

Yoko pulled off her sweaty t-shirt and sweatpants and collapsed on her futon noisily, staring at the ceiling in contemplation. "Well, I figured we would be here for a while. I mean, we have to be trained and shit." She counted off on her fingers, "It takes about a year to master weaponry, which we haven't learned yet. We're still learning defensive techniques, but we haven't actually spent too much time on offensive techniques or killing techniques. So two more years. I'd say about four years or so."

"You know we've graduated from Otai already. Does it make any sense that we have to stay?"

"True, but I want to see what kind of missions our little assassin group gets."

"And you're okay just dropping your entire life for this?"

Yoko rose a brow, "What entire life?" She snorted, "I'm an abandoned child who was raised by the head monk in a Mongolian temple. Sure, he's like my dad, but I was a woman in a man's environment. I knew when it was time for me to go."

Kim's eyebrows went up in surprise. She had honestly thought Yoko was Japanese. The name _was_ Japanese after all.

"You're not Japanese?"

She smirked, "Mongolian. Yoko's a cover name."

"What's your real name?"

Yoko rolled her eyes and turned over on her side, rummaging under her futon to see if she had any leftover snacks from when she snuck them out during meal periods. "Not gonna tell you that, Blondie. Besides, can we stop talking about this? It's giving me hives."

It was the first time Kim had seen Yoko look genuinely uncomfortable. Perhaps this was worth looking into some other time. But not now. Now? Kim had something to do.

She opened her drawer and pulled out her passport and her wallet and stuffed them both into her bag.

"You leavin' the school?" Yoko was sitting up now, a frown marring her pretty features. "You know Headmaster will hunt you down like a dog, right?"

Kim yanked off her formal blouse before pulling on a tank top. No doubt Seaford would be incredibly hot at this time of year. She slung her little sack onto her shoulders and sighed.

"I just have some business to take care of outside the school."

"Outside the school? Where?" Her expression was normal, but Kim could see Yoko's eyes were shrewdly watching her, coming to their own conclusions. It was the look of a vulture. There was no way Kim wanted Yoko to know anything about her past.

She didn't really trust Yoko with her personal business. Sure, they had spent almost three years in courses, as partners, and as roommates, but even so, they didn't really know each other that well. Or at least not well enough to reveal life secrets with each other. Quite frankly Kim was disturbed by her behaviour and saw Yoko as an annoyance most of the time. And Yoko seemed to think Kim was a weakling. That, coupled with the fact that they were polar opposites, made it difficult for them to become friends.

"I'll tell you where I'm going when you tell me your real name." Kim spun on her heel, not waiting for a response when Yoko's face curled up, "And I know you're probably about to say you'd rather eat elephant poop than tell me, so obviously I'm not gonna tell you where I'm going."

Yoko's lips curved up, somewhat impressed, "Well played Blondie."

"Don't wait up. I probably won't be back tonight."

With that, Kim left the room, ignoring Yoko's loud laughter. Having spent several years in Honbu, she knew exactly how to get to the landing that stored the transportation for those going on missions. Kim hadn't been on any missions herself since that reconnaissance years ago, but she had seen others being deployed.

She snuck through the nurse's office and took the hidden elevator downstairs. Her skin was prickling in apprehension as she reached the landing. Not surprisingly, the Headmaster was standing next to one of the smaller planes with a smirk on his face. Kim's jaw clenched as she strode up to him.

"You're not coming with me." she ground out, "If you're letting me go to Seaford to break contact, I'm doing it on _my _terms. In my _own_ way. With no babysitters."

"I expect nothing less, Kimberly. The pilot has already been briefed on where to go." She walked past him with a suspicious frown on her face, but he only returned it with a chilling smile of his own, "Good luck."

The pilot turned in his seat to face Kim once she walked in. "You must be Kimberly. Destination is Seaford correct?"

"Yes." She glared out the window, watching the Headmaster's retreating back as he left the landing. She could just see the smug look on his face.

"Flight time is going to be about eleven hours. Touchdown will be in a field just outside the city. You have until 11:59 pm tomorrow to finish your business then I will leave, with or without you. You don't look like you're planning to stay in Seaford, but just a word of warning that if you do not come back to Otai, Headmaster will make good on his threats. We clear?"

"Crystal." Kim grumbled, leaning back in her seat, trying to quell her nerves on what she would have to do. She didn't want to face Jack just yet. Otai didn't have anything like vacations so she had missed Christmases, Valentine's Days, New Year's, and several other holidays she could have spent with him. This was the first time she would see him in person in three years, and it would be to tell him goodbye.

Closing her eyes, she tried to get some sleep and prepare for what she knew she had to do.

~.~.~

"Jack! Congrats on graduating!"

Kim sat in a tree in the backyard of Jack's house, watching as some of his relatives who just arrived ran over to him and gave big hugs and kisses. They looked proud.

"Got a gift for you. Shot glass for college." His aunt winked at him as Jack took it nervously.

"Thanks. Is dad going to be okay with this?"

"Most definitely not, Jackie dear. That's why you can't show him the gift. Ever."

He hugged her again and greeted some of his other family members.

Jack was hosting a pretty big graduation party for family and friends and family of friends, and she smiled as she watched some of her old schoolmates chat around the area. Who would have guessed that Donna Tobin would befriend them? She smiled as she watched Milton talk to a mischievous looking girl with wavy dark brown hair. He was blushing. It was adorable. There was also Rudy standing with his arm around Miss Applebaum's waist. She was glad to see they were still together after all this time.

Kim hadn't been able to make it to the actual ceremony on time, but from his invitation in the mail, she had become aware that he was hosting this party and came over. At first, she had been deadset on confronting him, but as she approached, she had lost her nerve. She didn't know what to say to him and honestly, she wasn't sure she'd be able to talk to him. She sighed heavily and leaned back against the trunk of the tree, watching through the small cascade of leaves as Jack continued to talk to different people.

Jack still was the same, but she had been blown away with how different he was. He had skyrocketed in height over the past three years. When she had left, Jack was a bit shorter than his dad. Now, he was taller than him. He still had his boyish charm to him, but he definitely looked more grown now. And his voice was much deeper, that it had surprised her. He looked like a strapping young adult male, though she did think the little goatee on his chin looked kind of silly. She wished she could tell him so to his face. Her face fell. He had grown. They had all grown and looking at the people she used to call classmates, she felt her eyes start to tear up. She couldn't even say anything to any of them and that hurt her heart.

There was a rustling in the leaves above her and she snapped her head up, wondering if it was an animal.

To her surprise, it was Jerry.

Holding back her shocked, deer in headlights look, she thought that maybe if she didn't move, Jerry wouldn't see her. But he just had to look down. And he did see her.

"No way…" he said breathlessly, blinking a few times to see if his eyes were deceiving him, "Kim?!"

She waved weakly.

Jerry's smile grew impossibly wide. "Holy shit! Kim you're here! Does anyone else know? What are you doing in a tree? Shoot, I gotta go tell Jack!"

"Shh!" She put her finger to her lips, trying to quiet him. She didn't want to get caught. Especially not like this. "Keep it down. And don't tell anyone!" she quickly added.

Jerry looked confused, "Why don't you just join the party? Everyone will be so happy to see you."

"I can't… Not yet." She chewed on her fingernail. "Why are you up here Jerry?" she asked, a little irritated that he had intruded her private viewing session.

"Trying to avoid Claire. She thinks that now that we've both graduated and the bad blood between our schools is over and done with, I want to date her. Which I don't."

Kim frowned, "Jack invited Claire to his graduation party?"

"No. She just showed up! Ay caramba, I can't catch a break!"

Kim chuckled quietly, letting her laughter taper off as she turned back to watching the people enjoying the party. She found Jack again and sighed as he chatted with Milton and that brunette. He held out his hand in annoyance and the brunette smirked and dropped his watch into his hand. Kim smiled in amusement at that.

"I take it you came to see Jack?" Jerry's voice broke her out of her lamentations.

"How did you know?"

He shrugged, "Doesn't take a genius to figure out who you've been staring at for the past few minutes."

Huh. Jerry was a lot more perceptive than she remembered.

"Doesn't matter. I can't do anything about it."

"But why don't you just go down and talk to him? Are you shy or something? I can come with you if you want?"

That was kind of him to offer, but she couldn't speak to Jack. It's not that she didn't want to. She really did. But she couldn't speak directly to Jack without this whole thing getting messy. There would be too many questions, too many things that would need to be answered and quite honestly, Kim wasn't sure she could get away from the conversation unscathed without revealing too much. It was just better if she disappeared like a ghost. And she had to end this. It was almost nine and she only had a few hours left before she had to go.

"Jerry. You have to promise me that you'll never speak to Jack about seeing me. Please."

He frowned, staring at her in confusion. "Kim, you know I can't do that to him. Do you know how much he's been pining over you? He basically has a shrine dedicated to you in his closet. Not gonna lie, it's pretty creepy yo."

"I know you can't keep secrets from your best friend, but you're my friend too Jerry. You have to promise me you won't say anything to him."

"What's going on Kim? Are you in some sort of trouble? We can help."

She closed her eyes. Why wouldn't he just listen? "I'm not in any trouble Jerry. But I can't come back to Seaford just yet." _Or probably ever._

"Why can't you just tell Jack that?"

"He would never just take it in stride Jerry. You know him. He'd keep pushing and asking for answers and prying and trying to get me to talk. And I can't tell him. I need him to let me go. So please?" she pleaded, "Do it for me Jerry? Please don't ever tell him."

He scrutinized her face and saw absolute fear in her expression. It was not a look he was used to seeing on Kim's face. Sure, she hadn't been around for three or so years, but he had never seen such a defeated and fearful look on her face before. What happened to her?

"I promise Kim. But you will eventually tell him right?"

"I will." She lied easily, alarmed at how easy it was for those words to come out of her mouth. She never liked to lie to her friends. But she had to get Jerry to drop it.

Jerry sighed, "I hope you come back soon Kim. Cuz it's gonna be hella hard to keep this secret to myself."

"And that's why you're such a great friend Jerry."

"I gotta get back to the party. Will you be sitting here all night?"

"Doubt it."

He nodded, albeit with a confused expression, "Then, see ya?"

Kim watched in amusement as he clambered down the tree, not unlike a monkey before her gaze drifted back to Jack. He looked like he was looking for someone. And he kept zoning out of conversations and looking off into space. No doubt he was waiting for her. But she wouldn't show.

After a long while of sitting and watching the people down below, Kim wanted a change of scenery. Especially since Jerry kept looking in her direction every once in a while. It was only a matter of time before someone wondered why and checked for themselves. Utilizing the techniques she had learned so far, Kim silently climbed down the back side of the tree away from the eyes of the other people. She tucked her hair into the black cap she packed. Sliding through a huge mass of people wouldn't be hard. But her blonde hair was too noticeable. Especially in the somewhat darkness.

Kim focused on walking not too quickly or slowly and looking like she blended in nicely. This part was pretty much do or die. If she brought any attention to herself, she would get caught immediately. Taking a deep breath, Kim walked through the many people, not too close to the center, but not too far at the edge where someone might notice her. She kept her pace even to look like she was just strolling to find a new person to talk to. She kept her gaze forward, and avoided any eye contact.

_Almost at the sliding door. Careful Kim._

No one spared her a glance. She had blended in. She reached the porch and at that point, she scurried a bit more quickly. There weren't too many people on the porch, and she had to move fast. Kim got into the kitchen and let out her deep breath. Her pulse was racing and she couldn't believe she had made it through there without anyone catching her. Sensei would be proud.

She walked discreetly through the house she used to spend several hours in hanging out with Jack. She fondly walked through the rooms on the ground floor, nostalgia hitting her as she remembered she had caused that dent in the living room floor. She was surprised it hadn't been fixed yet. An ax kick* she had been doing had missed the boards and her heel had crashed onto the floor. She chuckled, remembering how Mr. Brewer had forbidden her and Jack from practicing any karate inside the vicinity of his house.

She looked at the wall where Mr. Brewer had occasionally taken Jack's height since they moved in back when the gang had been in middle school. She laughed quietly when one line suddenly jumped to a point much higher. From there, the line just kept going up higher and higher. No doubt Jack's father was shocked at his son's growth. Kim was too. One summer a long time ago, Jack was only a teeny tiny bit taller than her, and the next thing she knew, they came back to school, and he was almost half a head taller. And he loved to tease her about how small she was.

The trophy case near the stairwell was bigger than she remembered, and she could see some shiny new trophies on the upper shelves. She smiled. Jack had told her about some of the bigger tournaments he won, but clearly, he was being humble. There had to be at least forty new medals and trophies that she had never seen before.

Hearing some noise coming from the kitchen, Kim climbed the staircase and headed down the upper floor hall, looking at the old pictures hanging on the wall. Jack's father had a habit of creating a timeline of memories of his son on the wall. She was surprised to find a picture of her and Jack when they fell asleep on each other during a spring picnic. It was one of their last few dates before she had to leave for Otai. She was surprised to see it on the wall. After all, she was positive they had been alone. It was a little weird to see how young they had both looked compared to what they looked like now. Kim didn't think she had changed too much from that time, save for gaining more defined curves, but she was definitely not the same as the girl in the picture. She laughed at the picture of Jack, Jerry, and Milton wearing sunglasses and looking suave and sexy in their prom tuxedos.

She walked on and finally got to Jack's room, pushing open the door as she walked in. It was the same as always. Perpetually messy and blue. It smelled like him, and she took a big whiff. She had missed this scent. It reminded her of home and spending time in his warm hugs. She made her way over a pile of laundry to the other closet in his room that wasn't open and spilling out clothes and yanked it open. Her eyebrow rose in amusement.

Jerry hadn't been kidding. It wasn't like a stalker shrine, but he had a couple of blown up photos of her on the walls, their photo booth pictures and a couple cute professional photos of the two of them together. There were some photo albums and what looked like a journal sitting next to the cherry blossom petal she had given him when she left. She picked up the petal gingerly, surprised he had kept it after all this time. It was sweet.

She set it down and picked up one of the photo albums, looking through pictures of only her. She figured these were all pictures he had of her doing martial arts. A lot of them were tournament photographs. Just how many candid photos of her did Jack take? There were at least three albums. That was a lot of photos.

All of this was great to see he still cared for her as much as she cared for him, but it made her even more sad that she would have to break contact.

She didn't know how long she had been looking at the photos, but when she heard footsteps in front of his room, and she quickly set down the album and slid under his bed. She looked from under the covers to where the feet moved around. A light blue shirt fell onto the ground and Kim's breath caught, realizing Jack was in the room. He walked over to the shrine/closet and closed it after standing there for some time.

And then his feet disappeared when he settled on his bed with a loud and heavy sigh. Kim felt the vibration of the frame around her and covered her mouth to keep from gasping.

_Dammit!_

There was absolutely no way she could escape if he was in his room! She had trapped herself.

There was a knock that sounded on the door, and she watched as another set of feet walked inside.

"Aunt Amelia is leaving tomorrow morning. Don't forget to wake up early enough to say bye."

"I will dad."

"Your friends really left the place kind of trashed you know. I'm putting you on clean up duty."

His comment was met with silence.

Mr. Brewer sighed. "How are you holding up?"

The bed creaked as Jack rearranged himself, "I don't know. How would you be holding up if your girlfriend didn't show?" At that, Kim's shoulders slumped. She was right there! She desperately wanted to come out and console him, but she knew she couldn't. She harshly bit her lip to the point of drawing blood to keep herself from jumping out and revealing herself to him.

"I'm sorry Kim didn't show, son. Maybe she got held up."

"She didn't say anything, dad. Didn't leave an email. Didn't call. Nothing. What am I supposed to think?"

"Well you've gotta give her the benefit of the doubt, Jack. Has she ever just stood you up without saying anything? There's got to be a reason why. Kim has always been a great girlfriend to you. And even before that, she was your best friend. Just be patient. She'll probably have an explanation for you."

"I hope so…" Jack sounded so dejected. She could just imagine how pained his face might look. Kim closed her eyes and clenched her jaw tightly to keep from blurting out anything.

Mr. Brewer changed the subject. "You going to any parties later tonight?"

"Probably Jerry's. I'm gonna get a bit of sleep before it though. I'm exhausted."

"Alright son. Don't drink anything I wouldn't. And if you do, I better not see you drive back home."

"Got it, dad. You mind turning off the lights on your way out?"

Kim watched a pair of feet leave the room, pausing momentarily near the doorway before ultimately leaving. The lights cut off and Kim's eyes saw nothing but darkness. There was no noise in the room, save for Jack's breathing and the sound of light tapping, as if he was texting or something.

Kim didn't move. She was laying under the bed lamenting the fact that they were so close, but she couldn't even say a word to him. So close she could just touch him, but she couldn't because it wouldn't end well for either of them. They were literally a foot apart, but they could've been miles apart for all he knew.

It was about twenty minutes before she heard Jack's breathing deepen and then another ten or so before he started lightly snoring. If she wanted to make her getaway, she had to do it now. She only had about 45 minutes before her ride would leave.

Kim snuck slowly out of the bed, avoiding objects littering the floor with extreme grace and care. She stood up and turned around, looking down at him longingly. He was sleeping soundly, though his face looked a bit pinched. Being this close to him made her heart beat faster and she smiled softly. He still looked like the same Jack she knew.

"I tried to talk to you Jack…" she whispered. "But it's better if I don't."

She reached down and lightly took his hand, "You know, you're the best thing that has happened to me. I'll come back Jack. One day. Even if I'm not the same Kim you once knew, I will come back eventually. I wish things could have been different, but my life has become too complicated. And it's all my fault. Forgive me for breaking your heart."

She moved some tousled hair out of his face lovingly and without thinking about it, leaned down and pressed her lips to his softly.

As she straightened, she let go of his hand, letting it drop back down to the comforter. Jack didn't stir, but his eyebrows relaxed a bit and Kim smiled gently. She climbed up on his desk and pushed open his window slowly and quietly. It had always had a pretty bad squeak in the past and she didn't want to risk the chance that Jack hadn't replaced the hinges yet. When the window was open, she pulled herself out and leaped onto a branch of the tree outside his window. She was glad it hadn't been cut down yet. She didn't know how she would have gotten down if it had been gone.

Sighing sadly, she turned around once more and looked back into Jack's dark room, staring at his face, mentally taking in the contours of his handsome face and his features. She would probably never see him again.

"This is goodbye Jack."

With that, she swung down from the branch and landed on the ground softly. She cast one last, fleeting look towards Jack's room before spinning on her heels and running through his neighbourhood to get to hers. She had to get to her home. There wasn't much time left. Thankfully, she didn't live too far from Jack.

When she got to her house, panting and trying to catch her breath, she noticed all the lights were off. Kim peeked through the garage window, but her mom's car wasn't in there. They weren't home. Kim pulled the spare key out from under the flower pot on the kitchen's outside window sill and entered her house through the kitchen door in the back. She didn't have time to fully run through the house she had grown up in, but she let out a little sigh and made a mental note of all the most important places and walked through the house, storing in her memory everything special about this place. She would probably never come back here again either.

Her mother's and her sister Piper's bedroom were both empty. Sighing dejectedly, she stood in Piper's empty room, taking into account the pictures on her vanity. She had grown quite a bit since Kim had last seen her.

"Sorry I can't be there when you go to middle school. Do your best Piper. Love you." She called out into the room.

Kim avoided her room completely and tore back down to the back kitchen door. She relocked it with the spare key before finding her bike in the back. She rolled it along the side of her house and back to the front, before placing the spare back exactly where she found it. She wished she could have more time for a proper goodbye to her past, but she knew she needed to go.

Kim took off, pedaling quickly out of her neighbourhood and away from Seaford, avoiding going through the shopping center where the Bobby Wasabi dojo was located. She knew it would tear her apart. She pedaled like the wind, heading further and further out of Seaford until she finally reached the clearing in the wooded area near the lake just outside of Seaford where the pilot had touched down.

She left her bike next to a tree and hopped off, jogging to the plane where the pilot was holding a flashlight pointed to the sky so she could see him. She approached him, steeling her face into an unaffected and nonchalant expression. She refused to show any emotion in front of any of the Headmaster's lackeys.

The pilot smirked as she stepped up to the plane, "It's 11:55. Didn't think you would come back."

"Well I'm here aren't I? Start the plane so we can get out of here." She snapped, avoiding his gaze. She could feel her eyes glazing over and the stinging behind them was growing stronger.

They both got into the plane, and it wasn't until Seaford looked like a small square of land in her eyes that she finally let the tears fall in long, uncontrollable droves.

~.~.~

When Kim got back to their room, unsurprisingly, Yoko was MIA. She sighed in relief. She was sure she looked and smelled like hell. Not to mention her eyes were probably red and puffy. No doubt, the pilot had seen what she looked like, but thankfully, he hadn't said a word when they arrived back at Otai, and she had left without having to say anything. She was emotionally drained, and she wasn't sure she could handle conversation with anyone without bursting into tears. Knowing Jack had probably contacted her by now, Kim finally opened her email, dreading what she would see.

_From: jbrewer  
To: kcrawford_

_Dear Kim,_

_Okay, so you didn't email me back, I didn't see you at graduation, and your mother says you didn't come home, but your bike was missing. What's the deal? Are you still at Otai? You're worrying me. Kim, where are you? We're all getting worried. What's going on?_

_I'm sure you must have had your reason for not coming back, but I'm not gonna lie. It HURT. Why didn't you let me know you couldn't come?_

_Kim… C'mon. Talk to me. _

_We always tell each other whenever momentous things are going on in our lives, don't we?_

_And why do I get the feeling that you were in my room? This is gonna sound weird, but Kim. I swear I smelled you. And I think I heard you… Are you in Seaford at all anymore?_

_Please answer back. I'm begging you._

_Jack._

Her eyes teared up again, and she angrily swiped them away, trying to keep her emotions in check while she wrote her response.

_From: kcrawford__  
__To: jbrewer_

_Dear Jack,_

_Congratulations on your graduation. Give my regards to Milton, Jerry, et al._

_I'm sorry I couldn't make it back to Seaford. I have some things to finish up here._

_I know you're mad and hurt. But I need you to forgive me one last time Jack. Some things have come up beyond my control. _

_That being said. This is the last time I will be emailing you. And this is the end of our relationship._

_Don't ever forget I love you. But please move on._

_Kim_

Hitting the send button took her a while to gather the courage to do, but when she did, a little part of her died inside.

His response came almost a few minutes later, but Kim stared at her inbox, unable to open it. She knew if she opened it, she would be tempted to respond to the email. And then she would reveal everything to him. And that would put him in danger. And she couldn't do that to herself or to Jack. She couldn't keep her phone. Not when it was tempting her to contact him again. And she didn't want him to get hurt. She needed him to move on.

Without a word, she grabbed her cell phone and her bag and left the room, sneaking past the patrollers on her hall and in the school until she reached the small library on the main floor. It was quaint and because there was a no talking rule in this particular library, not many people frequented it. But Kim loved it. In a far corner of the library, there was a brick fireplace that was always lit. It kept the room toasty and warm and it reminded Kim of the fireplace in her mom's study back home. She frequently would come to this library whenever she felt homesick in the past few years, but something told her that she wouldn't be coming back here after this. It reminded her too much of home. And it would hurt too much to remember the people she had to leave behind.

Bending down in front of the fireplace, she wiped her eyes of the tears lingering on her cheeks. Sniffling softly, she unlocked her phone one last time and stared at her wallpaper picture of her and Jack goofing off during a karate tournament in the past. Closing her eyes in pain, she flung the phone into the fireplace, letting out a shuttering breath as her only key to contacting Jack disappeared into the orange flames.

Kim sat there, watching the phone burn slowly in the fire before she finally stood straight up, loosely fingering the dangling ring around her neck. She would let him go. Because she didn't want him to be hurt. She would forget about Jack and continue as an assassin so nothing would happen to her or him. She knew it would take a long time, but ultimately, she would heal. It was time to move on.

~.~.~

Headmaster leaned back in his office chair, letting out loud laughter as he watched Kim throw her cellphone into the flaming pit through the monitor. He had been waiting for this moment for three years since she had lied to him about not having a phone all those years ago. He knew she had been emailing her boyfriend and family these past few years. After all, why else would she have decided to keep her phone?

It didn't bother him though. One of Kim's best aspects was that she was selfless and that she would do anything to protect her friends and family. It was perfect for him because the fact that she had someone back home that she wanted to see desperately only made it that much easier to force her to cut contact.

He laughed ruthlessly in his office as he watched Kim leave the library disheartened. He was excited about this new development. Excited to manipulate her some more. She continued to play into his hands in a way that no other recruits ever had. Kim could be the perfect assassin if he played his cards right. And he would ensure that it would happen. Give or take a few more years, he would mold Kim into the ruthless killer he knew she could become.

* * *

*******ax kick: it's just what it sounds like. A kick in a downward motion similar to an ax. They're bloody hard to do...**

******Consider this the official shift in Kim.**

******Also, you get extra points if you can figure out who that wavy haired brunette was ;3**

**Hope it was enjoyable! Thank you :)**


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